Another Life
by xoxomickeyxoxo
Summary: If PPTH had never existed and these six characters had decided to not become doctors, where would they be and what would they be doing? ChasexCameron, HousexCuddy, WilsonxAmber
1. Chapter 1

Hey, ! I don't know what really gave me this idea, but I thought, 'What if PPTH never existed and none of these characters were doctors?' I know it's totally unrealistic (besides who would hire House besides Cuddy?) and weird that in New Jersey that these six characters would ever meet and become friends (or something like that) but I felt like having fun.

Just a few adendums to the story. Amber isn't as Cutthroat-Bitchy (as House likes to call her) as she is on the show. One, I can't write like that for how I'm trying to spin this story, and Two, she's not competing for a job, so therefore she doesn't need to be a cutthroat bitch. Also, I'm sure House is going to be a little nicer than on the show. Once I bring him in.

Thanks, and enjoy the story! Reviews are GREATLY appreciated! Plus, if there's any story that you guys would like me to check out, just link it in your review, or tell me the name and I'll R&R!

* * *

"No, no, Jimmy, don't eat that," Alison Cameron said, rushing over to the craft table, where Jimmy Hendricks was trying to eat a crayon. She pulled it out of his mouth and pulled a piece of paper out from under the crayon box.

"You draw with these, see?" she said, drawing a big smiley face for him on a piece of paper. He giggled and nodded. "Yellow!" he cried taking the crayon and drawing over the smiley face. Cameron smiled at him and she glanced over at the clock – 1:45.

"Class?" she called, clapping her hands to get their attention. Twenty-one tiny faces looked over at her.

"It's time for music class!" she said, enthusiastically. The kids giggled and lined up behind her. She walked them down the hall to the music room and waved to the teacher.

"2:15, right?" she mouthed, pointing at the clock. The music teacher nodded and Alison smiled at her and walked down the hall and down stairs to the teachers lounge. Alison sighed, thankful it was Friday, and poured herself a cup of coffee. While sipping on her coffee, she dug through her bag to find her cell phone. She flipped it open to find one new text message, from her best friend, Lisa Cuddy.

It read, "Cameron – just got the promotion for head chef!!! Can you meet for drinks tonight?" typed in pure Cuddy fashion, with punctuation and correct spelling. Cameron smiled, happy for her friend. She typed back, "OK. 830 Kaseys?" and flipped the phone shut, throwing it back inside her already messy bag. She shut her eyes, trying to savor the half an hour she had in silence.

"Oh, hi, Cameron," she heard, and looked up to find her colleague, Amber Volakis, entering the teacher's lounge.

"Hey, Amber. How's it going?" Cameron asked, straightening up in her chair.

"Good," Amber said, sitting in the chair across from Cameron. "Do you have any special plans for the weekend?" Cameron shook her head.

"I'm meeting a friend for drinks tonight, but that's all. What about you? Are you and James doing anything for the weekend?"

"No, he's probably just going to have his friend over, Gregory House, over for the game on Sunday. Men and their football," Amber rolled her eyes. Cameron nodded, pretending to know. She hadn't had a guy… in almost a year. Amber smiled, sympathy pulling at the corners of her smile. She looked over at the clock, and stood up quickly.

"I have to get my kids. I'll see you later," she said, waving and then at the doorway turning around to face Cameron. "You should come this weekend. For the game. I mean, we won't watch it or anything, but we could just hang out or something." Cameron smiled and nodded.

"I'll think about it, I have your number," she smiled, seriously considering the offer. Maybe things in her life would pick up.

Cameron pulled up to Kaseys and turned off the car. She grabbed her black patent leather purse, and slid out of the car, locking the doors. She saw Cuddy pull up in her silver Prius, and she leaned on the side, waiting to congratulate her friend. Cameron looked around and saw a black Ford Taurus, pull up next to Cuddy's car and straightened up, alert. Cuddy parked, and got out of the car, heading over to Cameron to give her a kiss on the cheek.

"Congratulations, Cuddy. Hey, who's the guy following you?" Cameron asked, watching as a blonde guy, stepped out, running finger through his wavy hair. Cuddy looked over her shoulder and then smiled.

"Oh. Chase!" she called and the blonde guy looked up, locking his blue eyes with Cameron's own green ones. Cameron felt a rush of heat surge through her body, and she looked away, embarrassed. Cuddy looked over at her friend, with a knowing smiled and gestured Chase to come over to them. Chase hesitated, and then walked over to them.

"Cameron, this is Robert Chase, the other head chef. He just moved here from New York. Chase, this is Alison Cameron, my best friend," Cuddy said, introducing them formally, pushing a ringlet of raven black hair behind her ears. Cameron extended her hand, feeling warmth crawling up her neck.

"It's nice to meet you, Chase," Cameron said, smiling at him.

"As well. Can I buy you ladies a drink?" He said, speaking in an accent that made Cameron a little weak at the knees. They nodded, and the three of them headed into the bar.

"So what are you? Only child? Brothers and sisters?" Chase, who was sipping on a beer, asked Cameron, who was already on her fourth drink of the evening, at only 10 o clock. She giggled, not exactly knowing why.

"I have a brother. What about you?" He shook his head.

"Only child," he said, flashing a brilliant white smile at her, one that made her knees buckle again.

"Cheers!" she cried, clinking her glass to his, and downing her strawberry margarita. The bartender looked over at them.

"Hey, man, make sure your girl doesn't spill anything. I don't want to have to clean that up." Chase, who was still sober, blushed a little bit.

"She's not my girlfriend," He said, shaking his head. Cameron giggled, and hiccupped, sipping on her sixth margarita.

"I don't have a boyfriend. I haven't for a Very. Long. Time." She informed the bartender, drunkenly. Chase snickered behind his tall glass. Cameron turned to him, tucking a piece of toffee colored hair behind her ear, and fixing her sharp gaze on him.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing," Chase said, embarrassed. "I just find that hard to believe. I think… you're beautiful," he said, reddening a little. Cameron's face turned a bright red.

"Thank you," she said, then tilting her head back and finishing the last of her drink. Chase smiled and shook his head.

"That's it lets get you home," he said, putting down his beer, leaving a tip, then pulling her off the bar stool, putting his arm around her tiny waist. Chase wove through the crowd, finding Cuddy, who was talking to a tall brown haired guy, looked up and saw them, and waved them over. As they approached, Cuddy's mouth dropped open.

"Is she okay?" she asked, smoothing Cameron's hair, and feeling her forehead.

"She's fine, just had a few too many drinks; I was thinking that I should take her home. Do you think you could give me directions to her place and her house keys? I don't want to search through her purse" Cuddy nodded, telling him the streets to turn down. She finally took Cameron's bag, and found her keys in the side pocket.

"Thanks, Chase. Are you sure you don't want me to do it?" Cuddy asked, holding her hands out. Chase shook his head.

"You celebrate. Besides, you have an early day tomorrow, and I don't work tomorrow. So relax and have fun," Chase smiled. He gave Cuddy a hug, thanking her for bringing him, and headed outside.

Chase turned the key in the hole at Cameron's apartment, holding her by the waist, who was laughing uncontrollably. He set her on the couch, and went to her kitchen to make some coffee. As the coffee was brewing, Cameron lay on the couch, with a pounding head, and watched the room rock back and forth. Chase soon came into the room with a cup for her.

"Well, call me tomorrow, to let me know how you are," he said, picking up a pen to write down his phone number on a Post-It.

"Wait!" She cried, sitting up slowly, and putting a hand on his shoulder. "I don't want to be alone tonight," Cameron said, looking up at him. Chase stared at her for a second, taken aback.

"S-Sure," he stuttered, standing up and holding his arms out.

"I'll get you to bed then," Chase said, picking her up and bringing her to her bedroom, laying her down on the big bed, and sitting down with her. He helped her out of her shoes and socks and pulled back the blankets. While he was doing this, he felt hands in his hair, and looked up to see Cameron running her fingers through his hair.

"Cameron? Are you okay?" He asked, pulling back a little bit, denying to himself how good it felt to have her touching him.

"You're really hot," she said, moving closer to him and pressing her pink lips against his. He kissed her back for a moment, breathing in her vanilla scent, then moving away from her again.

"Cameron, you're drunk. We can't." He shook his head defiantly, and went to stand up, but Cameron grabbed his shirt and pulled him on top of her.

"Who's going to stop us?" She asked, unbuttoning his navy blue collared shirt, and tossing it away. Chase, finally gave into his feelings, kissed her back passionately, pulling the covers over them.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey, everyone, I got a couple reviews, and they were all really nice, so thanks a lot for reading and reviewing! I love the support and I'm definately going to try to keep writing this, even though school and stuff is going to keep me busy. But I know I'm going to be grounded so I'll be able to write.

Some notes on the story: Just if anyone was curious for the strange Top Chef reference, if you guys have seen the Top Chef commercials for this season, they do a montage of the characters and there is one at the end that looks EXACTLY like Chase. My friends and I watch that channel [I can't remember which one it is now, haha] over and over to see Chase-look-alike.

Also, I had to change around relationships a little bit to make the story work the way that I wanted to. Wilson and House are obviously best friends [and even though they fight and stuff, they are best friends, you can't deny it] and Chase and Cameron are like meant for each other. But I had to change things around to make the story work the way that I wanted to. Cuddy and Cameron are obviously not best friends in the show, but they do show each other a certain level of respect and I always thought that if they weren't so busy with work, they would be able to make a friendship. Amber and Wilson obviously didn't get married, but as much as I hated Amber and as much as I didn't like Wilson [except after the season four finale, I have a new respect for him] I always thought that they were really cute together. And this certain character isn't House's half brother, but I really really like this!

**Extra Add-ons: **Whoops. In the last chapter, and this one, I forgot to put a disclaimer/copywright on this story. So here it is.

Disclaimer: I do not own House M.D. or any of the characters or storylines. As much as I wish to.

Copywright: Don't take my stuff.

Also, I thought I'd dedicate this story to my best friend Teresa. We started reading Fruits Basket fanfictions in, something like seventh grade, and we read Twilight ones in eighth grade. She's definately the only one out of my friends who can appreciate this and I love her lots.

Enjoy!!!

* * *

Bright sunlight streamed through the windows, reminding Alison Cameron, once again, to get curtains for her bedroom. She blinked, and opened her eyes and sat up. Her head throbbed incessantly, and she lay back down in her white down pillow, ceasing the throbbing. She stretched her arms and legs, and slowly began to realize she had no clothes on. Last night's events came flooding back to her: Meeting Cuddy for drinks, locking eyes with a beautiful blonde in the parking lot, the many **many **margaritas, Chase holding her head in his face as he leaned forward to kiss her, clothes being torn off, and the sex. Cameron buried her face in her hands. It wasn't like her to meet a guy and ending up in bed with him, drunk. She would have been a lot more upset if she hadn't remembered that it was her idea. Cameron's attention quickly diverted from last night to the smell of bacon and eggs, wafting into her room. She pulled a blue robe on and headed out into the kitchen, where she found Chase cooking breakfast for her, a coffee pot brewing on the counter. Cameron stood there, in shock, staring at him, feeling a weird feeling in her stomach… almost like butterflies? Cameron shook her head, passing it off as nausea from the hang over. Chase noticed her and smiled.

"Good morning," he said, pouring her a cup of coffee and setting it down on the counter. She pulled herself up onto the bar stool and smiled at him.

"Thanks," she said, sipping on it. "You make really good coffee," she said, taking another long sip. He nodded, and showed her his accomplishments of the morning.

"Eggs? Bacon? Pancakes?" He said, gesturing out to all the food. Cameron felt heat crawling up her neck, and itched, trying to make it go away.

"Everything looks so good, I'll take all of it," she smiled, and then wrinkled her brow. "I didn't even know I had this much food…" she pondered. Chase shook his head.

"I had to run out to the store to pick up a lot of it," he said, serving her a plate, piled with steaming food. She picked up a fork, and took a bite of eggs and smiled.

"This is really good, you should be on Top Chef or something like that," she smiled at him. Chase reddened from the other side of the counter, and turned away, busying himself with dishes and pans. A few minutes later, he grabbed a plate of his own and sat with her on the counter. They talked casually, laughing and flirting oh-so-slightly, delicately avoiding the topic of last night. Cameron and Chase cleaned up and they stood by the door, saying goodbyes.

"I left my number on the counter… you can call whenever, to hang out, or something like that," he said, pulling on his jacket, running his hands through his hair. Cameron smiled and nodded. "You're car is still at Kaseys, I paid the bartender to make sure no one would tow it, so you can just pick it up whenever."

"Bye Cameron," Chase said, leaning into her and giving her a small kiss on the lips, and then turning to leave, leaving Cameron in the entryway, heart pounding frantically in her chest, and that same nauseating feeling in her stomach. Her phone rang in the living room, breaking her from her trance, and she walked quickly to go get it, stomach and head not up for jogging.

"Hello?"

"Cameron! How are you feeling?" Cuddy's voice asked over the line.

"Okay, just a little hung-over," Cameron said, dialing the volume down on the phone a couple notches.

"That's good; you looked pretty bad last night. But what did you think of Chase?"

"Oh, Chase, I thought he was very nice." There was a pause on the line.

"You slept with him, didn't you?" Cameron could hear the curiosity from miles away.

"No! Why would you think that?"

"Come on, Cameron, he's gorgeous, he's single, he offered to take you home, you were completely wasted… I just … figured it out."

"Maybe…" Cameron admitted hesitantly. Cuddy laughed on the other line.

"Oh, damnit, my lunch break is over, I have to go. But, you'll have to tell me later. Bye, Cameron!" The line beeped and Cameron hung up the phone. She noticed a fluorescent green Post-It on the counter, and picked it up, smiling as she saw Chase's number on it. The nauseating feeling in her stomach returned and she sat on the couch, turning on the television, watching a re run of Sex and the City, the throbbing in her head slowly disappearing as the day passed. She kept thinking about Chase, remembering the feeling of his hands tangled in her hair, his lips against her neck. Cameron shook her head, reaching for her bag on the counter, pulling out her phone, and dialing Amber's number.

"Hello?" a man's voice answered on the other line.

"Hi, this is Alison Cameron, I was wondering if Amber was there."

"She's right here, hold on. Amber! It's Alison Cameron."  
" Hello? Cameron?"

"Hi, Amber, I was just wondering if maybe your invitation for the game tomorrow was still open." There was a pause on the other line.

"Of course! I'm really happy you can come! Now, I think House is bringing his half brother tomorrow. He is new in town and doesn't really know anyone. He is about your age. So, even though it's just a football game, try to dress nice, okay?"

"Sure, okay. Hey, Amber, do you think I could bring my friend, Lisa?"

"Why not? We can make a party out of it. Hey, Cameron, I have to go, but I'm glad you can come! So, be at the house around four o clock okay? Bye!" With those last words, Amber hung up the phone. Cameron smiled, laying back down on the couch, as a commercial for fall clothes flashed on the television. Maybe House's brother would be cute, and she could forget about Chase, and maybe get the happily ever after that she had always wanted.

That night, as Cameron sat on the couch with a plate of Chinese food (it was a wonder she stayed so skinny when she ate so much), watching _While You Were Sleeping_, she called Cuddy.  
"Hi, this is Lisa Cuddy. I'm not here, so leave – Hello? Hello?" Cuddy's voice interrupted the recording.

"Hey Cuddy, it's me."

"Oh, hi, what's up? Sorry, I was just getting out of the shower."

"It's okay. I was just wondering if you wanted to come to a party with me tomorrow." There was a pause on the line.

"Party? What kind of party?"

"Well, it's a football party, but we're not watching. Amber Volakis, do you remember her? Anyway, she invited me and I thought I could go. Her husband, Wilson, is bringing his friend, Gregory House. Maybe…" Cameron smiled, heavily insinuating a match-up. Cuddy laughed.

"I'll come, but I'm definitely not promising anything!"

The next morning, Cameron woke up early and took a jog down to Jamba Juice to pick up a smoothie. Finishing the smoothie, she threw it away and jumped in the shower. She blow-dried her hair, letting her long hair cascade down her shoulders. Cameron picked out a simple navy blue top and black pants to wear with her square toe high heeled boots – her favorite for fall weather.

Cameron pulled up in her navy blue Rav4to Amber's house at exactly 4 o clock. Amber and Wilson, it turns out, didn't live too far from Cameron's apartment. She touched up her lipstick in the rearview mirror and took a deep breath. She stepped out of the car, locked the doors, and rang the doorbell to their house. Wilson answered the door and smiled at her.

"Hi, Cameron, it's nice to see you again. Come on in," he greeted her, stepping aside to let her inside.

"Thanks. Your house is so nice," Cameron said, politely.

"Is that House?" Amber called from the kitchen. "Tell him he's going to owe me money when the Bears lose."

"No, it's Cameron."

"Oh, hi, Cameron! Come on in the kitchen!" Amber called. Wilson took Cameron's jacket and purse, and Cameron followed the smell of the food and found Amber.

"Hi, Amber, thanks for having me over," she said. "Wow, this is a lot of food. Do you want some help?" Amber nodded and together, they began cracking open bags of chips and putting them into bowls.

"Is your friend coming? I'm sorry, I'm terrible with names. What was it again?"

"Cuddy? Lisa? Oh, she's coming, but I think she's going to be late. She just got promoted to this head chef position so she's definitely putting all in, right now," Cameron said, crumpling up one bag and tossing it in the garbage can. Men's voices came flooding through the air, and the girls looked at each other.

"That must be House and his brother. Let's go say hi," Amber said, wiping her hands on a piece of paper towel and leading Cameron back to the living room. Two men, an older one with messy hair and a blonde stood in front of Wilson.

"House, this is Alison Cameron, Cameron, Gregory House." Cameron extended her hand to him.

"Hi, Greg, It's nice to meet you." House grunted a response and shook hands with Cameron. Cameron took a deep breath and turned to the blonde that stood next to him.

"This is my brother, Robert Chase." The blonde turned around, and she locked her green eyes with none other than the blue eyes of the exact same Robert Chase that she had spent the night with last night. Cameron's mouth dropped open.

"Chase?"

"Cameron?"


	3. Chapter 3

Hi everyone! It's me again, haha. I've gotten a couple reviews so far, and they're all really great so thansk for reading and supporting me. I'm trying really hard to update and stuff, because I usually get lazy writing fanfics. But I have an ending mapped out, and the beginning is already over, so all I need is the middle. So thanks for reading and keep reading and tell your friends to read too!

**Disclaimer: Blah blah blah.**

**Copyright: Blah blah blah.**

Just a few notes for the chapter.

Um, I would just like everyone to know that I want to marry Chase. :) That's just a general note. Sorry. :)

-The Chameron scene in the middle. You'll recognize the dialouge. I switched it up a little, but you get the picture.

-When Cuddy says what happened to House [leg wise], she says, "a blood clot or something." I know what an infarction is, so please don't review yelling at me because I don't know my medical terms. Trust me, I'm a medical dork. They're not doctors, and most people don't know that you can have infarction in different places in your body.

-Cameron's scene with her class will also sound familiar. I thought it was cute, because if you've seen the episode... it'll make sense.

So, enjoy!

* * *

"Do you two know each other?" Wilson asked, looking between the two who were staring at each other, as if they had seen a ghost.

"We've… met," Cameron said, almost harshly, and broke her eye contact with Chase. The doorbell rang and everyone stood awkwardly in the entryway before Cameron volunteered to go answer it.

"It's probably Cuddy," and she turned on her heel and flounced out of the room, her hair swinging behind her. Amber, Wilson, and House all turned to look at Chase, who put his hands up as in defense.

"I really shouldn't say anything," Chase admitted.

Cameron opened the door and before inviting Cuddy in, she stepped outside and closed the door behind her.

"We have a problem." Cuddy's eyes widened.

"What? Are you okay?" Cuddy asked. Cameron nodded.

"Chase is in there. Right now. He's House's half brother or something like that. I don't know what to do!" Cameron threw her hands up in defeat.

"Cameron, you're working yourself up into a pretty respectable freak-out. Do you have feelings for him or something like that?" Cuddy questioned, tilting her head. Cameron shook her head.

"No! I don't like him!" Cameron said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "Let's just go back inside," she declared, opening the door and inviting Cuddy in.

"Hi, everyone, this is my best friend, Lisa Cuddy. Cuddy, this is Amber Volakis, James Wilson, and Gregory House." Everyone noticed the deliberate skip over Chase, who was standing between Wilson and House, but no one said anything. House's eyes dipped over Cuddy, who was dressed in a sensible skirt and a pink top. A smile slowly spread over House's face. Amber was about to extend her hand, when House stepped in, extending his own, leaning on his cane for support.

"It's _very _nice to meet you," House stepped in, shaking Cuddy's hand. Cuddy blushed mildly, while Wilson and Amber rolled their eyes in the background. The group headed into the living room, where the game was about to start. Cameron, while Cuddy and Amber were engrossed in a conversation about Cuddy's job, glanced over at the men who were absorbed in the television. Chase, however, was paying attention to Cameron, not the game, and when they locked eyes again, Cameron stood up.

"I'm going to go get something to drink. Do you want anything?" The women shook their heads, and Cameron ventured off to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water. Chase watched as she walked away, before House hit him the head with his cane.

"Ouch," Chase said, rubbing his head. House fixated his blue eyes on him.

"Women don't like it when you beg," he simply said. Chase rolled his eyes and

stood up.

Cameron leaned against the counter, closing her eyes as she slowly sipped on the cool drink.

"Cameron?" A male's voice said from the entryway and Cameron took a deep breath and opened her eyes.

"Hi, Chase." Cameron turned her head and forced a smile, then looked down. Chase stepped forward, wishing that he could ask her why she didn't call. He decided that it would be too creepy, considering they had sex just the night before last.

"How have you been?" Cameron nodded.

"Good. Haven't done much since Saturday morning." Chase nodded. He wondered if that was something that she did often, but he didn't dare ask.

"So, listen."

"Chase." Chase gestured for her to go first.

"Chase… the other night… it's not something that I do very often – ever in fact," Cameron began, answering his question. Chase breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't want to be one of many, a fish in a giant pond. He wanted to mean something, be someone to her. Chase took a step toward her

"But it probably shouldn't happen again. We shouldn't see each other." Chase stopped in his tracks.

"Do you think I wanted to?" Chase tried to counter. Cameron shrugged.

"You followed me in here."

"When two people have sex, if they can do it again, they're going to. That is when things get complicated. I don't want things to get complicated. Unless the sex sucks, then it doesn't matter." Chase grinned.

"It definitely didn't suck."

* * *

"Good night!" Cameron, Cuddy, House, and Chase waved to Wilson and Amber, who waved back. Amber said something to Wilson and he laughed, kissing her tenderly on the cheek. Cameron watched from over her shoulder, feeling a pang in her chest. Why couldn't she be happy like that? The two women looked over at the men.

"I'll see you around sometime," House winked at Cuddy, pulling Chase away. Chase waved to Cuddy and Cameron, his eyes lingering on Cameron for a moment before he looked away sadly. Cameron looked down and away, pulling her hair in front of her shoulders, covering herself up. House and Chase got into the car and Chase drove off, pulling around the corner.

"What was all that about?" Cameron asked quickly, hoping that Cuddy wouldn't ask any questions about what happened in the kitchen. Cuddy looked away, not meeting Cameron's eyes.

"He was nice." Cameron rolled her eyes, remembering how he threw chips at Wilson all evening, giving himself points for whichever part of his body that he hit.

"To **me**," Cuddy emphasized when she noticed the look on Cameron's face. Cameron smiled.

"He was incredibly nice to you. But isn't he a lot older than you?" Cuddy shook her head.

"No, it's just the cane that makes him seem older. Something happened with his leg… like a blood clot or something, and he can't use it. We talked," Cuddy smiled, twisting a ringlet around her finger. Cameron smiled and looked down at her watch.

"I have to go, classes tomorrow. Call me, maybe we can grab something to eat," Cameron said, giving Cuddy a kiss on the cheek, and hurrying to her car, wrapping her coat tightly around her thin body. She turned to Cuddy.

"Did you get his phone number?" Cuddy gave her thumbs up from the street, where she had parked. Cameron smiled, waved, and headed home.

* * *

"Good morning class!" Cameron cried cheerfully, slightly out of breath from running all the way from staff meeting to her classroom.

"Good morning Miss Cameron," enthusiastic five-year olds called back out to her.

"Taylor, why don't you tell us what you did this weekend," Cameron said, leaning against the edge of her wooden desk. Taylor giggled.

"Miss Cameron, how come we always tell you what we did, but you never tell us?" Taylor said, stumbling over the words a little bit. Cameron paused.

"Well… I went to a party on Sunday and met two new people. It's fun to meet new people, isn't it?" The class nodded in agreement.

"Were they boys?" another little girl asked from the back of the room. The class giggled. Cameron smiled at them.

"Yes, they were boys. But I'm pretty sure one of them likes my other friend," Cameron said, smiling as she thought of the interactions between House and Cuddy.

"What about the other one?" the class asked. Cameron laughed.

"We're just friends. You guys know that girls can have friends that are boys and boys can have friends that are girls." The class giggled at that.

"Do you like him, Miss Cameron?" Allie, the shyest girl in the class, asked. Everyone turned, startled to her hear voice.

"He's very nice," Cameron said, rooting through her bag for today's papers, trying to distract herself from thinking about Chase - again. There had to be something wrong with her. The class giggled again.

"You like him…" they chorused. Cameron blushed and shook her head. There was a knock on the door, and the Spanish teacher came in.

"Is this a bad time Cameron?" she asked. Cameron shook her head and turned back to her class, purse in hand

"Class, Senora Montoya is here for your Spanish lesson. But I will see you later okay?" The class nodded.

"Hola, children!" Cameron heard as she left the room. She headed down to the teachers lounge for another cup of coffee. She dropped her bag on the table and frantically searched it. Cameron finally found a crumpled up Post-It note, looking intently at the numbers and the name. She pulled out her phone, punching each number with a shaking hand, and finally pressing send.

"Hi, this is Chase; I can't get to the phone, so leave a message. And if this is Allison Cameron, Cameron, it was really nice to see you again. I hope I will hear from you. If this is anyone else, sorry about that. So leave a message and I'll call you back." Cameron smiled at the message and waited for the beep.

"Hi Chase, It's me… Cameron. I think … I might have been wrong… the other day. I really would like to see you again. So, call me back. If you want to. You don't have to." Cameron realized she was starting to stutter and she decided to wrap it up. "So call me. Or not. It's okay. Bye, Chase." Cameron quickly hung up the phone, and wiped her forehead. Great – nausea and sweating, too. This is just great.

* * *

On a quick break from the kitchen, Chase checked his messages. The little person flashed on the screen, letting him know that he had one new voicemail. He pressed his speed dial.

"You have one new message. First unheard message, sent today, at 9:47 A.M."

"Hi Chase, It's me… Cameron," Chase heard repeated on his phone and a smile spread over his face, despite his best efforts, as he listened to the message. He listened to the message again and then headed back to the kitchen.

Cuddy watched as he left, looking slightly depressed, and then watched him return a few minutes later, with a twinkle in his eye and a small grin.

"What happened to you?" Cuddy asked, looking over her shoulder while stirring the sauce on the stove.

"Nothing," Chase smiled, reaching over Cuddy and turning down the heat, then pulling chicken out of the fridge. Cuddy shook her head and turned back to the sauce. Chase smiled, counting down the hours until his lunch break, when he could call her back.


	4. Chapter 4

Okay, I apologize for not updating for a couple days. I would have posted this chapter yesterday but was being RIDCULOUS. I don't know why. Sorry!

First of all, I thank you guys sooo much! I've gotten a BUNCH of reviews and it's more than anything I've EVER written (under different pen names and stuff). So thank you thank you thank you! [I'm excited. Plus I had cheese fries from Beef-a-roo tonight and I'm a little hyper. What's better than those?]

Secondly, I also apologize for this chapter. It's kind of short, slow, and rambly. I just needed it for like a filler, you know? So again - I'm sorry!

Thirdly (is that right?), someone reviewed me commenting about Kutner and Thirteen and whether they will be in the story. So here is where I make the regrettable announcement that I don't really like Kutner and Thirteen as a couple. I actually think Foreman and Thirteen are adorable, but I'm not bringing them in the story. I already had an appearance planned for Thirteen near the end, so I'm really really sorry!!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own House M.D., characters, blah blah blah.

**Copyright: **The only thing I own is my story. So don't steal it.

* * *

11:58…11:59… 12:00. Chase jumped up from the stool where he sat, dicing red peppers, and his heart beating with joy.

"Cuddy, I'm taking my break," He said, taking off his apron and hanging it on the hook in the back. Cuddy wiped her hands on her apron.

"Hold on, Chase." Cuddy said, following him to the back.

"What made you come in so giddy this morning?" Cuddy accused, putting her hands on her hips, staring Chase down. Chase smiled and shook his head.

"No reason," he said. Cuddy gave him another look. "Cameron called." Cuddy smiled.

"Did you think that she wouldn't?" Cuddy asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder. Chase shrugged. "She doesn't do that ever. I mean, we've been friends for a really long time, I've never seen her do that." Chase nodded.

"She told me. In the kitchen. When she also said she didn't want to see me again." Cuddy nodded, understanding the situation now. She moved her hand off his shoulder and left the back room. Cuddy turned around to face him once more.

"Blue and white orchids are her favorites." Chase smiled, put on his coat, and left the restaurant. Cuddy quickly pulled her phone out of her pocket and texted Cameron.

"What made you change your mind??" The reply came back quickly.

"A group of 5 yr olds :)"

* * *

"Hi, Cameron," Amber said, sitting down at a table where Cameron sat alone in the teachers lounge during lunch break. Cameron smiled.

"Hey, Amber. Thanks again for inviting me over. I had a good time yesterday. So did Cuddy." Amber laughed.

"She should have. I have _never_ seen House be so pleasant to anyone – ever. And I have known him for a very very long time." Cameron was surprised.

"Isn't Wilson his best friend? House isn't even nice to him?" Amber shrugged.

"They're best friends, so there's some degree of respect there, but… I don't know. I just think he's really into Cuddy." Cameron smiled. There did seem to be a flirtatious aspect of their relationship. Who knows?

"Mrs. Cameron?" A security guard said from the front of the room. Everyone quieted down and looked at Cameron, who was profusely blushing from all of the attention.

"Yes?" Cameron asked, standing up.

"There's someone here to see you. Do you know a Robert Chase?" A smile spread over Cameron's face. She exchanged a smile with Amber and then turned back to the security guard. The female faculty members broke out in whispers and the male faculty members consoled each other, considering they had all been in love with Cameron the first time she smiled at them, laughed with them, or even looked at them with her beautiful green eyes.

"Yes," she said, hurrying out of the room. She followed the security guard around the corner to another security guard and Chase who was leaning against the wall, holding a bouquet of blue and white orchids. Chase and Cameron locked eyes and they smiled at each other.

"You know this man?" the first security guard asked her. Cameron nodded, never taking her eyes off him. Her heart felt like it was about to beat out of her chest, her stomach kept tossing and turning, and Cameron was suddenly thankful for wearing an incredibly strong deodorant, because she was breaking out in a sweat. The security guards left the two of them alone and they smiled shyly at each other.

"Hi, Cameron," Chase said, pushing himself off the wall and handing her the flowers. "These are for you. Cuddy mentioned… the flowers," he said, suddenly nervous. Cameron buried her face in the flowers, pink slowly creeping into her cheeks.

"They're beautiful," she said, peering over the tops of the flowers at him and smiling. She laid them against the wall and crossed her arms. Chase stepped forward and took her hands in his, rubbing his thumbs against her fingers.

"I was happy you called me." Cameron looked up in surprise.

"Really?" Chase nodded. "Even after… what I said? Yesterday? You still…?" Cameron blabbered on aimlessly. Chase nodded again.

"Cameron, I like you - a lot. The first time I saw you, I thought, 'I have never seen anyone so beautiful in my whole life.' I really want us to have something together," Chase said, stroking her hands, pulling her closer to him. Chase hesitated, then wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her gently on the lips. Shivers went up and down Cameron's spine as she kissed him back gently and then pulled away.

"Are you free tonight?" He asked, holding her close to him. Cameron smiled and nodded. Chase looked down at his watch and cursed.

"I have to be back at work." He let go of her hands. "I'll call you or text you later today, okay?" Cameron nodded and he pulled her in for another kiss. "Bye, Cameron," he said, turning the corner and leaving. Cameron smiled, watching him go, then picked up the flowers and headed back to the teachers lounge. Everyone was quiet and when she walked in, the room was loud again. Cameron rolled her eyes and sat back down at the table, laying the flowers on the chair next to her.

"Flowers, huh?" Amber said, looking over the table and seeing the bouquet.

Cameron headed back to her class room, where the kids were all gathered in the center of the room, anxiously awaiting story hour. A little girl in the front raised her hand.

"Yes, Maggie?" Cameron asked.

"Why is your face red?"

* * *

Chase quietly slipped through the back door of the kitchen, with a few seconds left of his break. He pulled on his apron and was sneaking through the entrance to the kitchen where he ran into Cuddy.

"I'm so sorry, are you okay?" he said, putting his hands on her shoulders, steadying her after almost knocking her over. Cuddy shook her head.

"I'm fine. You should get back in the kitchen," she teased, taking off her apron and hanging it on the hook. "How did it go?" Chase smiled.

"It went great," he said, heading back into the kitchen mysteriously. Cuddy watched him go and then headed out the front. She bumped into someone, who was carrying a glass of water and it spilled down the front of her white shirt.

"I would apologize for your shirt, but I happen to think it's an improvement on the matter," House said with a mischievous grin as he looked down at Cuddy. Cuddy looked up, blushing. A waiter handed her a few napkins and she began blotting her shirt as she headed outside. House followed her out into the crisp fall weather.

"So what are you doing here?" she asked, blotting her shirt, looking into his ocean blue eyes, feeling heat rising on the back of his neck.

"I had to bring Chase a key. Wilson's holding poker night, and I almost thought about locking him out, but then no one could feed Wilson's dog," House explained, his eyes never leaving Cuddy's. Cuddy tilted her head.

"Wilson's… dog?"

"Amber's allergic to the damn thing and Wilson couldn't bear to give poor Hector up, so he's stuck with me," House looked away. Cuddy smiled sensing his embarrassment of the nice thing that he had done – and the embarrassment of being embarrassed.

"That was nice of you." House shrugged.

"I'm just a nice guy," he said with a smirk.


	5. Chapter 5

Hi everyone! Chapter five! Sorry it took a little while to get up, been extremely busy! So again, I'm really sorry!

This chapter was boring again (sorry!), but the next chapter will definately be longer and definately have more meat to it.

Just a few notes before, and I have a few notes for after the chapter...

A reviewer under the name housemd, pointed out that Cameron should be called Miss Cameron, not Mrs. Cameron. I'm retarded, I should have noticed that. So thank you!

The flashbacks are in italicized, present - regular. Just in case this is someone's first fan fic.

Note to readers: I have almost forty reviews and I'm really really touched. Some stories I've read are finished and don't even have this many reviews. I'm so glad that you like it and I definately wouldn't keep writing without you guys. So keep reading, reviewing, and telling your friends

**Disclaimer: Blah blah blah**

**Copyright: Blah blah blah.**

* * *

Clothes were strewn all over the floor and the bed. Magazines flipped open to "Today's Hottest Looks." Makeup products lay on the bathroom counter. Cuddy sat in the middle of the bed, cross-legged, flipping through a _Cosmopolitan. _

"No jeans, obviously. I mean, he's taking me somewhere really nice. Spiagga is pretty much the nicest restaurant in all of New Jersey, I swear. So maybe no pants even? A skirt? But all of my skirts are so business-y, not date-y," Cameron rambled frantically, pushing whole sections of her closet aside. She rearranged hangers and put the dresses in the middle.

"What about this one?" Cameron asked pulling out a strapless red dress. Cuddy chortled.

"Save that for the tenth date." Cameron started to hyperventilate.

"What if there isn't a tenth date, I mean, what if I blow it on this date?"

"There will be a tenth date."

* * *

"Your tie is crooked." Chase groaned and undid it, pulling it off his neck for the umpteenth time that night.

"You know, you could actually help me get ready than sit and nag," Chase exclaimed pulling the yellow tie through the loop.

"I guess so. Do you think that you could get me another beer?" House gestured to the kitchen. Chase stopped and stared at him.

"How is that helping me?"

"You see, the drunker I get, the more obsessive I get about your outfit. And with this next beer, I will probably have reached a girl's level of obsessiveness, and you'll be ready to go tonight. Plus, you know, bum leg," House said sarcastically. Chase rolled his eyes but headed to the kitchen to get House a beer. He tossed the beer over to him and went back to the bathroom. He tightened the tie around his neck one last time and grabbed his wallet from the nightstand.

"I'll be back tonight, late – I would say don't wait up, but I'm not really counting on those words ever coming out of your mouth."

"I'll wait up," House said extremely sarcastically. Chase rolled his eyes at House and that and with those last words, he headed out of the house.

* * *

Cuddy gathered her purse and coat, waving goodbye to a nervous, but beautiful Cameron. Cameron paced around the room for a few moments, before she realized walking around didn't calm her down. She sat on the couch, tapping her heel anxiously against the floor.

_Cameron got into her car and started the car as her phone started to ring. She checked the caller ID and smiled at the name on the caller ID. _

_"Hi Chase," she answered, pulling out of the parking lot and onto the main roads. _

_'HI, Cameron. I just wanted to call and check if you were still free for tonight.' Cameron bit her lip to keep from smiling._

_'Yeah, I'm free," she said._

_'So, I'll pick you up at seven then? I have a reservation at Spiaggia for around then." _

_"Okay."_

_"I have to go, Cuddy is calling me back in the kitchen. Bye, Cameron."_

_"Bye Chase." She arrived at her apartment and after taking a shower and curling her hair, she stood in front of the closet, trying to discern what to wear on the date tonight. She looked at the clock – it read almost 5:30. She ran to the nightstand and grabbed her phone, texting Cuddy a desperate SOS._

There was a knock at the door and Cameron rushed to the door, stopping and taking a calming breath before opening the door to Chase's smiling face.

"Sorry, I would have buzzed, I just followed someone up here, and … hi," Chase rambled, blushing, and holding out a red rose. Cameron smiled, going over to the counter to place it in the vase with the other flowers that he had brought her that morning. He helped her with her coat and led her out the door.

30 minutes later, they were seated comfortably at their table, champagne on the way, and browsing through menus. He looked at her over the tops of the menus and smiled. She caught his eyes and tilted her head, confused.

"Do you see something you like?" She asked naively. Chase nodded, never taking his eyes off her.

"You look very handsome tonight," Cameron said, pausing for a moment and then resuming. "I've always loved this restaurant."

"It was always nice the few times that I've been in town." Cameron nodded and smiled at him, looking back to her menu.

"You look beautiful tonight," Chase said, placing down his menu and smiling at her. Cameron blushed, sticking a curl of her hair behind her ear, which had fallen out a little since she had curled it this afternoon. She nodded, her voice caught in her through, heat creeping up the back of her neck, and those butterflies racing around in her stomach. Chase smiled again. The waiter came over and placed their orders, Chase ordered the puttanesca, Cameron, the ravioli.

"So have you ever been in a serious relationship before?" Cameron asked bluntly. Chase shrugged.

"I lived with someone for awhile, but it didn't work out too well. We split amicably though, so no hard feelings. And you?" Chase asked politely, not knowing what he was about to get himself into. Cameron looked down at her hands.

"In college, I fell in love… and got married. It lasted six months. Thyroid cancer that metastasized to his brain. I was 21 and watched my husband die." Chase remained silent, unsure of what to say.

"I'm sorry…," he said quietly. Cameron remained silent for a moment before looking back up.

"It's okay. I'm fine. I'm over it." Cameron said. There was a silence between them as the waiter refilled their champagne. Cameron fiddled with her bracelet under the table, willing to keep the stitches in her heart closed. Chase smiled reassuringly at her and complimented her earrings. Cameron thanked him, and the conversation slowly resumed to its normal pace.

"I had a really nice time tonight," Cameron said as her and Chase wandered around a park. She bumped her hand against his and he looked at her, startled, then laced his fingers with hers, squeezing her hand gently. Cameron blushed, looking way and running a hand through her hair. The pond sparkled from the moonlight and they sat down on the bench tonight.

"I had a good time too," Chase answered finally, putting his arm around her shoulder and running his finger in circles on her shoulder. Chills ran up and down her spine as she felt his hand on her shoulder. She silently scolded herself, warning herself to keep a level head about him. Chase put a hand on her cheek and tilted her face towards his, kissing her soundly on the lips.

_'Screw it,'_ Cameron thought, angling her body towards his, as she fell into his kiss.

* * *

Well obviously you know what's going to happen after that kiss ;], haha. Any of you guys notice the red dress from the poker episode? I saw that episode today and thought it might be fun to add that in there.

Three things that I really want to clarify. This story wasn't meant to be like other fan fictions. It was supposed to reflect their life if PPTH had never existed. The dialouge between the characters and their interactions and relations are perfectly normal, in or out of a hospital. So, that's why I use dialogue and instances from the show, because I think that they are something that definately would have happened outside of the hospital. The second thing is that, sorry if the Chameron relationship seems sort of sexually agressive. That's how their relationship started in the first place, and I wanted to mirror that, only adding in fluff. The last thing is that, Huddy fans, don't worry, there will be more Huddy soon! And AmberxWilson fans (Wilbur? Sound's too "Charlotte's Web"), there's not much to really develop on the Amber Wilson relationship, I can at least spoil this much, I'm not following the Wilson trend and making them divorce. They're just in the story as fillers. So sorry if that dissapointed you guys!


	6. Chapter 6

So finally! Chapter 6 is here! It's taken me forever to finish it what with school, and being sick, and Model UN, and etc.

40 reviews and numerous favorites and views. I'm so honored! I've been working really hard on this and I'm glad you guys are reading this and liking it. So read and review and tell your friends!

So there will be more Huddy action soon I promise [there main story starts later] but this chapter is solely Chameron!

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything**

**Copyright: Just own the story**

* * *

Three or so months passed by and Cameron and Chase continued with their relationship, movies, dinners, walks in the park, and sex at Chase's new apartment. Cameron developed a stronger relationship with Amber and Wilson, with whom everything started, and numerous Sundays were spent at their house watching football. Cuddy and House maintained a friendly relationship, in which House had taken to calling her "Cuddles."

One day, Cameron was helping Chase move furniture around his apartment for the umpteenth time. They lay on the couch, exhausted from their efforts. Cameron twisted around in his arms, facing her boyfriend – it was weird for her to say those words.

"What are our plans for tonight?" she asked, pulling her hair into a messy bun. Chase shrugged.

"I don't know. I thought that maybe we could go to that new sushi place in town and then stay here." Cameron shrugged. She was never one for sushi, but she figured she could order a bowl of noodles or something.

"We could… stay at my house," Cameron suggested, realizing she hadn't been at her house for a couple of days. Chase shrugged.

"I guess… we can discuss it. I mean, I hadn't really thought about it."

"Why does it have to be a suggestion? Why can't you just stay over?" Chase paused for a moment.

"Okay…" he cautiously said. Cameron studied his expression for a moment and then just lay happily in his arms.

After a sushi dinner (Cameron had noodles, Chase had the sushi), Chase lay in bed, watching television, waiting for Cameron, while she washed her face in the bathroom.

"So tell me something…" she called over to him and he turned down the volume on the television.

"What?"

"Why couldn't we stay over at my house?" she asked, rubbing her face in a foamy wash, making circles on her face. Chase looked away from her reflection in the mirror, feeling awkward and trapped.

"I don't know. I mean, you have a lot of stuff here, and it's closer to your work." Cameron rolled her eyes.

"Just an extra five minutes. And my apartment doesn't look like it was decorated by a drunken rugby player." Chase snickered silently.

"I don't know. I've never really thought about it," Chase repeated from their conversation that they had had this morning. Cameron looked at him through the mirror.

"Hey, Chase, come on, tell me," Cameron asked, splashing water on her face, switching off the lights, and coming to sit next to him, dangling one foot off the bed. Chase looked into her green eyes, full of curiosity and emotion. Chase took a deep breath.

"We always spend nights at my house… because… when we spend nights at your place… I can tell you don't really want me there…" Chase said cautiously, choosing his words carefully, so he would not hurt her. Cameron looked at him, bewildered.

"What do you mean?" Cameron pleaded, her green eyes looking sad and hurt, despite Chase's best efforts. Chase tried to backtrack, but found himself pressed up against the stone cold wall of truth.

"When we spend nights at your place, in the mornings, you always kicked me out. You've never cleaned out a drawer for me, made space in the closet - it's like you don't want me there. I was just a visitor."

"That's not true!" Cameron said, beginning to become frustrated with him. Of course she wanted him there!

"I wouldn't have invited you over if I didn't want you there…" Cameron said sadly, looking down. Chase shrugged.

"How long have you felt like this?" Cameron asked, looking at him. Chase avoided her eyes.

"From the start." Chase sat up, his short-sleeved shirt bunching around his well-defined arms. He put a finger under her chin, pulling her head up.

"I know it's hard for you… because you lost your husband. But… I can't keep chasing you forever." Something he said struck a chord with Cameron and she immediately stood up from the bed, throwing on her shirt and pants from earlier that night.

"Where are you going?" Chase asked, throwing off the blankets and standing up. Cameron pulled her shirt over her head, buttoning the buttons. She threw some things in her bag, and turned to face him.

"I should be getting back…," she said, heading out into the living room, and picking up her coat and shoes. Chase followed her, catching up to her and putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Why are you leaving?" he asked, turning her to face him.

"I really should go," she said again, tying her coat around her waist and slipping on her heels. Chase's experience with women had taught him never to provoke a woman if upset, so he (reluctantly) released his grip on her.

"I'll call you tomorrow?" Cameron nodded. He leaned forward to kiss her, but she turned her head, and he ended up kissing her cheek. Cameron gave a small wave, and headed out the door, shutting it firmly behind her, almost slamming it. Chase lay back against the wall, putting his hands on his head. He should have just kept his mouth shut.

* * *

Arriving back at her apartment, Cameron threw her bag on her counter, and began rifling around in the cupboards for a wine glass. She set the glass cup on the counter, and pulled a wine bottle from the bottom. She poured herself three quarters of a cup full, and headed to the bedroom. Cameron pulled on some pajamas, feeling herself sink into the comfortable mattress. She set the cup on the nightstand, and pulled a photo album from the bottom drawer. As she drank her wine, she flipped through pages of pictures from her childhood, junior high, and high school. Her heart began to break as she reached pictures from college, and soon appearing in her pictures was a handsome man in his twenties. The last pictures were of Cameron, in her wedding dress, and the man in his tuxedo. Cameron laid down the picture album on her lap, and lay her head back on the pillow. She knew she was running from him. The first real relationship she had in a very long time, and she was screwing it up – big time. Even though it was years ago, her husband dying made a huge impact on her life, a stain she was never fully able to wash away – whether she admitted it or not.

* * *

A few days passed and neither of them talked – Chase, too afraid to call after what he had said, and Cameron, too upset and too ashamed to admit the truth. Chase moped around the restaurant, while the chefs and Cuddy all silently worried. Cameron, while remaining cheerful for the sake of her kids, mourned over this as well. Numerous times a day, they would each reach for the phone to call each other, hanging up after only one ring.

That afternoon, Cameron sat alone in the teacher's lounge. The classes were watching the fourth grade play, and Cameron had opted out of going to watch, claiming that she had papers and was just too busy. She lay back on the couch, laying her head on her arm. Her phone rang, and she dug it out of her pocket, pressing answer without looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Okay, I know you haven't wanted to talk about what happened, but it's been five days, and he's moping around the kitchen, and you have been holed up in your apartment and … I have to know," Cuddy asked over the line, finishing the sentence in one breath. Cameron sat up straighter on the couch, leaning against the arm rest.

"I didn't clean out a drawer for him."

"I'm going to need more than that."

"We were at his place the other night, and I mentioned that we never spent nights at my place, and he said it was because he didn't feel like I wanted him there and that I never cleaned out a drawer for him," Cameron said with an exasperated sigh. There was a pause on the other line.  
"Why didn't you?"

"Didn't I what?"

"Why didn't you clean out a drawer?" Cameron sighed.

"I think I'm running away from him…"

"Why?" Cuddy asked, although she was positive she already knew the answer.

"After David died… I sort of… well, it was hard. And… Chase, I really like him. A lot. He's sweet, cute, just… so incredible… and I don't want to break up."

"Break up? What are you talking about? Cameron, it was just a little fight… not even a fight. Look, Chase is getting around five tonight. Go to his apartment. Talk. You will be fine. I have to go, love you, bye," Cuddy hung up. Cameron leaned back against the couch and closed her eyes – when did life get so complicated?

* * *

After another long boring day at work, Chase climbed four flights of stairs, wanting nothing except to sit on the couch and a watch a movie, the type that House would deem girly and worthless and most likely had replaced with some porn while Chase wasn't paying attention.

"Cameron?" Chase asked, walking up the hallway to his apartment and seeing the beautiful brunette, leaning against his door, sitting on the floor. Cameron opened her eyes, looked up, locking eyes with him. She stood up hurriedly, stumbling a little on her heel.

"What… are you doing here?" he asked, extending a hand to steady her. Cameron tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and looked down, shifting around. There was an awkward silence between the two of them.

"You were right about my husband. It affected me. Still....afffects me"

"So if you're saying you'll never be able to – "

"I cleaned out a drawer for you." Chase looked at her, shocked.

"Like, a … big one," Cameron said, finally looking up at him with a small smile playing at her lips.

"You sure?" Cameron nodded. Chase stepped forward, wrapped his arms around her, and they kissed.

That night, while Chase unpacked a bag at Cameron's apartment, Cameron sat on the bed, resting her head in her palm, watching him serenely. He tossed something leftover in the drawer at her, and she caught it before rolling her eyes and tossing away the white thong that she had accidentally left in there. He leaned over and kissed her soundly on the lips before continuing to unpack. Cameron smiled, feeling her heart pound a little, and sunk back into her little world.

* * *

So I hope you guys liked the chapter! I'm going to start the new one tonight or tomorrow and it should be done... soon. But I can't promise anything. Thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

* * *

Hi everyone! Sorry it's been so long - school keeps me extremely busy. I'm so glad people are reading and I get numerous e-mails every day for those adding to their story alerts, and favorite authors/stories. I'm deeply touched and I hope that you guys keep reading and reviewing and telling your friends.

Just a few notes about the chapter:

This is one of my shorter chapters, I needed some fluff and some filler before the next one, which is gonna be MAJOR events.

From here on out there's going to be a lot more Huddy action - this was the kickoff chapter for them.

I really hope I got House right. He's so hard to write just because he's SO rude and.... yeah. Let me know in your reviews what was good and what I could do better. Thank you!

**Disclaimer: I don't own House, characters, storylines (except mine), etc.**

**Copyright: Again, my story. Don't steal please.**

* * *

"You're in a visibly better mood," Amber said, sitting down next to a smiling Cameron, who was calmly sipping her coffee during lunch. Cameron turned and smiled at her friend.

"Chase and I made up last night." Amber breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank god, I'm sorry, but you've been moping around here for days, and it's nice to see you happy again." Cameron blushed, averting her gaze. She remained quiet for a moment, thinking how nice it was to have Chase back in her life again. Cameron was suddenly reminded of something and she turned back to Amber.

"It's Cuddy's birthday on Christmas Eve, so naturally she hates having just one day a year, while most have two, so I was thinking… if you wanted to of course, we could do something the week before… all of us," she said hopefully, however hesitantly. Amber nodded.

"I'll talk to Wilson. So you, me, Chase, Cuddy, and Wilson, right?"

"Don't you think House would want to come?"

"I doubt it." Cameron tilted her head, confused.

"I thought House and Cuddy…"

"What?"

"I don't know, I thought they… I just thought maybe there was something between them." Cameron looked at the clock. "I have to go. Talk to House for me okay?" She said, hurrying out of the room, late for her class.

* * *

That night at dinner with Amber, Wilson, and House, Amber decided to pry into House's personal life and see what the deal with him and Amber was.

"What are your plans for this weekend, House?" A fork clinking was heard as Wilson's mouth dropped open. Amber and House, while mildly cordial with each other, never maintained a friendly relationship. While they were dating, Amber and House usually bickered over "shared custody" of Wilson.

"Me?" House asked, widening his blue eyes in mock surprise.

"No, I'm talking to the house – I'm just so curious about what block parties it's going to this weekend," Amber said sarcastically. "You, asshole." Wilson rolled her eyes, relieved that there was not a change of pace in his normal routine, and picked up his fork again.

"Probably nothing – maybe pick up a few hookers, who knows?" House said, taking an inhuman bite of spaghetti.

"Well… I was talking to Cameron today, and she mentioned that Cuddy's birthday was on Christmas Eve, so they were going to celebrate a couple weeks earlier, and she wanted to know if you wanted to come to a dinner with her, Chase, me, and Wilson," Amber said quickly, taking in a deep breath at the end. House contemplated this for a moment. There was silence at the table. House shrugged his shoulders.

"Why not?"

"Did you just agree to go to a birthday party for another human being?"

"Yes we can," House replied snarkily, taking another giant bite of his food. Amber and Wilson exchanged a look. Either he was going to be a jerk or he was genuinely interested in another human being – and there was a good chance it was the first option.

* * *

"Are you at least not depressed about turning another year older?" Cameron asked, sitting across from Cuddy at the coffee shop on a Saturday morning, two weeks before Cuddy's actual birthday, snow falling gently outside. Cuddy shrugged, taking a bite out of her scone.

"I'm not dreading it I guess, it's just… you know when you were younger you were always excited about turning another year? I'm pretty sure that excitement faded after 21. There wasn't anything that you couldn't do after 21… so after that it just becomes so … routine, I guess." Cameron nodded her head in agreement. 21 hadn't been too far away, but she understood where she was coming from. Cameron took a sip of her coffee.

"Well I hope you're at least a bit excited, because it wouldn't be worth planning the party then," she said nonchalantly. Cuddy's mouth dropped open.

"You planned what?"

"I planned a party. It'll be you, me, Amber, Wilson, Chase, and House." Cuddy blushed at the mention of House's name. He was considerably rude and they had never had an in depth conversation, but there was something about him that made her heart flutter and heat creep up the back of her neck. Her last serious relationship had been years ago, and recently, she had spent a lot of hours at the restaurant, striving for this head chef position. Dates usually were nice but never actually resulted in anything major and they never made her feel anything inside. House… was different. Cameron watched Cuddy as she sat silently, thinking.

"Are you okay?" Cameron asked, concerned. Cuddy looked up, breaking from her reverie. She nodded in response.

"I'm great."

"You got a strange expression on your face when I mentioned House. Do you not want him to come?" Cuddy blushed again, shaking her head, her raven black curls bouncing as she moved.

"It's okay that he comes." Cameron smiled. She was usually right about these things and was glad to see that her score hadn't gone down, only up.

* * *

The next night, they all sat around a hibachi table at Nippons, Cuddy's favorite restaurant. Presents had been open, food had been eaten, and now the group of friends was just sitting and drinking together. The night was over, and the couples were heading back to their cars, Wilson and Amber, and Chase and Cameron. House and Cuddy walked next to each other, in stone cold silence. He hadn't said much to her that whole night, nor had he brought a present for her. She wanted to yell at him, but for what? He owed her nothing, they weren't boyfriend or girlfriend – not even friends, apparently. House and Cuddy waved goodbye and kept walking in silence to the back of the lot, where they had coincidentally parked next to each other. House nodded goodbye to her and then turned the key in his bike. It sputtered, and then the engine died. He turned the key again and nothing. Cuddy looked over at him.

"Are you out of gas?"

"I guess…" House pulled out his phone and dialed Wilson. He talked for a few moments and then hung up the phone.

"Wilson's bringing me gas." Cuddy nodded, leaning against her car.

"You don't have to wait," House said, looking straight ahead with his ice blue eyes. Cuddy nodded.

"I know." They sat in silence for a few minutes, crickets chirping and the moon shining brightly around them. He hopped off his motor cycle and walked over to her, leaning next to her against the car. He was so close she could feel his warm breath on her cold face, she could smell his cologne. Cuddy's heart started to beat faster and she took a steadying breath.

"I didn't get you a birthday present."

"I know." House suddenly leaned in and kissed her, his scruffy face pressed against her. She threw her arms around his neck and he tangled his fingers in her hair. After a moment, he pulled away and as he saw Wilson's car pulling into the parking lot, he whispered in her ear, "Happy Birthday Cuddy."

Wilson and Amber's car pulled up to them and Wilson set to work putting it in the bike. Cuddy, heart pounding, waved a shaking hand to them and turned to House.

"I'll see… I mean… Bye," she said, turning around and bumping into the car door. Wilson looked up.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine," she said, opening the door and with a wave and a look at House, she drove away.


	8. Chapter 8

* * *

Hi everyone. Here's chapter eight :) I got this one up a little quicker [and noticed a significant drop in my grades - haha just kidding] This is a major major chapter. It's actually like 2000 words longer then the rest, so I hope that you guys can get through the awfulness of it. So, the flashback is in italics, and I really really hope you like it!

Thirteen makes a guest appearance in this one! And I have an OC in this :)

**Disclaimer: I don't own House M.D, characters or storyline.**

**Copyright: This story is mine - Don't steal please!**

So, as always, read, review, and enjoy!

* * *

There was a knock at the door of her house. Cuddy looked up and shuffled over to the doorway in her fuzzy socks. Cameron stood at the doorway, looking nervous.

"Is everything okay?" Cuddy asked. Her hair was in a disarray, and her normally bright eyes looked hollow and sunken. Cameron rolled her eyes.

"I should be asking you that!" Cameron said, walking past Cuddy into the room and then turning around to face her. "Chase said you didn't come to work today. What's going on? I've seen you be so sick that they've sent you home so that you don't get everyone else sick." Cameron looked over Cuddy's shoulder. "I don't see Kleenex or cold medicine, so what's going on?" Cameron looked at Cuddy with her green eyes and Cuddy looked down.

"After you all left, House and I walked to the car, he to his bike, and when he tried turning it on, it just kind of died, he called Wilson, we kissed, Wilson came, I left, the end." Cameron's mouth hung slack.

"You… kissed? Like you tripped and your lips accidentally hit his?" Cuddy shook her head, leaning against the arm of the couch.

"Wow," Cameron mused, sitting on the coffee table. "So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know… I mean, we were friends, and then we didn't talk, but then he came to my party and then… kissed me." Cuddy shook her head, resting her chin in her palms, her elbows laying her knees. Cameron smiled, rubbing her friend's back.

"It'll be okay… really. He has your number, he can always call – or get your number. And you have his in case you really don't feel like waiting." The girls both giggled. "The bottom line is, if it's meant to be, it will happen." Cameron looked at her watch and then sighed. "I have to go; Chase and I are meeting up for dinner. Are you going to be okay?" she asked, standing up, and Cuddy followed in suit. She nodded, running a hand through her disheveled hair.

"I think that I might just get dressed, heard out to the store and grab a frozen pizza or something." Cameron smiled, giving her a hug and a kiss, and ran out the door.

* * *

"Hi, sorry, I'm late!" Cameron called, running up to Chase who was leaning against the car door, smiling. She hurried up to him, her heels clicking against the ice-cold pavement. They kissed and headed into the restaurant together.

"I went to go see Cuddy," she announced, as the host seated and handed them menus. Chase looked up from reading the wine selection.

"Really… How is she?"

"House kissed her." Chase set down the menu and looked up at his girlfriend.

"Are you joking?" Cameron shook her head.

"After we left last night, Cuddy and House were together and they ended up kissing." Chase shook his head and Cameron explained the story to him.

"Is she okay?" Cameron sighed.

"She seems a little upset… but I don't really see a problem here… They always flirted when the six of us hung out and with that kiss he really seemed to care about her." Chase smiled lovingly at the distress in Cameron's voice and reached across the table to grab her hand. She looked down and looked back up at him, worried.

"Cam, it's sweet of you to be so concerned, and to try to see the good in every situation, but the truth is… he's extremely unavailable… emotionally that is. His last relationship ended… badly. And since then he has been like that… to some degree he was always like that. It was like what you said… if it's meant to be, it will happen. If the two of them are meant to be together, they'll find a way."

* * *

Cuddy had managed to throw on a decent outfit, thrown up her hair, and put on a basic layer of makeup. She drove down to the supermarket, and was in the frozen foods aisle, picking out her pizza, when she noticed the frozen dinners by Lean Cuisine that seemed more appealing and healthier. Cuddy turned around and then noticed a man standing still at the end of the aisle, leaning on a cane. She froze and locked eyes with him, seeing the blue from almost 50 yards away. House looked at her for a moment, looked around the supermarket, and began to walk towards her. She looked around as well, feeling trapped as he made his way toward her. House stopped about a foot away from where she stood.

"Hi," she said, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear, cursing herself for not looking nicer. Classic Rule of Thumb – you never know who you are going to run into, so always look your nicest. House ran a hand through his disheveled hair and sheepishly said, "I'm sorry." Cuddy breathed a small sigh of relief, but remained calm.

"For what?"

"I'm not really great with these kinds of things…"

"What 'things'?"

"You're beautiful, smart, confident… I'm just not sure how to go about… doing this." Cuddy was taken aback. It was strange hearing these words come out of his mouth. She hadn't even been sure if he liked her – the kiss could have meant anything. Cuddy looked down as he waited for her answer. She took a deep breath and looked up with her blue green eyes into his.

"Would you like to go out with me tomorrow night?" House paused, thinking over the situation.

"I think we could." Cuddy looked up, surprised, and then smiled at him. He gave a sheepish smile at her and she reached up on her toes to kiss him softly on the lips.

* * *

Chase took a bite of his steak, wiped his mouth, and looked Cameron in the eyes.

"What does your night look like tomorrow?" Cameron looked up from her spaghetti with alfredo sauce.

"Why? Do you have something planned?" Chase shrugged and smiled mischievously.

"I had an idea… Do you have any plans? Teacher meetings? Parent teacher conferences? A date with your other boyfriend?" Cameron rolled her eyes, but shook her head.

"I'll pick you up around seven at your place?" He asked, as the server came and cleared their table. She nodded, tapping the server on the shoulder.

"Do you think that I could get some vanilla ice cream and apple pie?" The server nodded and in a few moments, she came back with some pie and with a scoop of ice cream on top. Cameron dug in, not quite satisfied by her main course. She looked up and saw Chase staring at her, with his amazing blue eyes. She blushed and wiped her mouth. "What are you staring at?" Chase laughed and shook his head.

"Nothing."

"Come on, tell me!" Chase bit his lip.

"It's nothing… you just eat cute."

"You can't eat cute. Nobody eats cute. Except Bambi maybe, but I don't," she said defiantly, picking up another piece of pie and ice cream and eating it. Chase laughed, leaning over the table and kissing her.

* * *

Chase looked up from stirring the spaghetti and saw Cuddy had quietly slipped in unnoticed, and was sautéing vegetables. Chase headed over to her and patted her on the back and she turned around and smiled brightly at him. He stepped back, a little shocked – her face was bright, eyes sparkling, and not disheveled at all.

"So… you're okay?" he asked, looking at her, befuddled. Cuddy tilted her head, reaching over him to grab some more pepper for the vegetables. She sprinkled it over the vegetables and stirred around some more, looking over at Chase and smiling.

"Of course I'm okay. Why do you ask?"

"Well… with House and everything… I know he can be a little… unavailable sometimes, but –,"

"Oh, everything is fine with that. We're going on a date tomorrow night." Chase looked amazed.

"Tonight. A date. Did he call you? Did he - ?" Cuddy explained the whole story to Chase, the kiss, the supermarket story, and the phone call clarifying the plans for that night. He listened, captivated by the story, and the fact that his cynical brother showed interest in someone else. He smiled as he watched Cuddy happily cook, and hoped that she wouldn't be the one that was hurt in the end.

* * *

During her lunch break, Cameron sat in the lounge, anxiously turning over her phone in her hands. She quickly dialed Cuddy's number, wincing as it started ringing.

"Hello?" Cuddy asked, the noise in the background receding as Cuddy found a quieter place to talk.

"Hey. It's me."

"Hey Cam, what's going on? You sound nervous."

"I… sort of have some bad news."

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, fine. I … have to cancel on drinks tonight." Cuddy stopped pacing around the room.

"Ohmygod, Cameron, I'm so sorry I should have called you earlier. I had to cancel too… I sort of have a date tonight."

"A date? With…"

"House," Cuddy said, wincing while she waited for the inevitable shriek.

"I would scream, but I'm in the faculty lounge, which would illicit a few strange looks, but Cuddy, I'm so happy for you!" Cuddy blushed.

"Thanks, Cam. I'm….excited, to say the least." Cameron smiled, happy for her friend.

"So why did you have to cancel for tonight? Big plans with Chase, right?"

"Right… how did you know?"

"We've been taking about it… it's your three month anniversary today." There was silence on the line.

"Oh no…"

"What?"

"I completely forgot… Do you think he'll be mad? Should I have bought him something? I haven't had a three month anniversary … for awhile," she mused, slumping back in the chair.

"Don't worry, just dress up really nice, something made by Victoria Secret," Cuddy teased and Cameron laughed.

* * *

"Wow." Chase said as Cameron got into the car, her black coat revealing only her shoulders. Her mahogany hair shining in curls that hung gently around her shoulder. She looked at him, pushing her hair away from her face.

"You look… beautiful tonight." Cameron blushed and looked down. Chase lifted up her face with his finger and kissed her on the lips.

As they drove down the road, Cameron turned to him and asked, "Where are we going?" Chase smiled and shook his head.

"You'll see…" he said, driving down the street, stopping at the red light.

"Why can't you tell me?" she asked, pouting a little bit. "Just a hint?" Chase leaned over and kissed her.

"No hints!"

A few minutes later, they pulled into the restaurant parking lot. Chase got out of the car, opened Cameron's door and they walked to the restaurant. He watched her silently, snickering. Cameron turned to face him, a little perturbed.

"What is so funny?"

"I can't believe you don't remember!" Cameron paused, looking around the parking lot. A smile spread over her face.

"Chase! I can't believe **you** remember!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms around him, and giving him a kiss on the lips

* * *

_"Do we really have to go to dinner, Mom?" a fourteen-year-old Allison asked, still beautiful, with short straight hair, slightly below her shoulders and less defined green eyes. Makeup could easily be seen on her face, but not caked on – it accented her already beautiful features. Her sixteen-year-old brother hit her on the head._

_"We have to have family time…," John said, imitating his mother's New Jersey drawl. She giggled as he sat on the arm of the couch, leaning against her back._

_"Come on kids," their dad said, jingling the car keys. The siblings exchanged a look and grudgingly headed with their parents to the car. _

_They drove for a little while, turning into the restaurant of The Pier House. The kids grudgingly walked with their parents, lingering a few feet behind them, talking about John's new girlfriend, Vanessa, and Allison's crush on one of the guys on the football team with John. The family was seated immediately and they sat around the table, each on their own side. Allison looked at the table next to them, and saw two little twins, a boy and a girl – they had the same head of thick brown curly hair._

_"I love kids…" Cameron said, smiling at them, coloring quietly in their books. Her parents and her brother turned to look at her. Cameron looked up, noticing the silence at the table._

_"Did I say that out loud?" She asked. They nodded._

_"Sweetie… I didn't know that you liked kids so much," her mom said, reaching over and rubbing her daughter's shoulder. Cameron blushed lightly, pushing a stray hair behind her ear and nodded. _

_"You should think about teaching," her father said, taking a sip of his wine. Cameron shook her head defiantly._

_"Why not?" her father asked. _

_"They… don't really make anything… and I have to be self-sufficient." John snickered at her._

_"What?" Cameron asked, shooting a playful glare at her brother. _

_"Sweetie, you don't have to make a lot of money… one, we'll always help you out with whatever you need, and you should be happy with what you're doing." Cameron paused, thinking about what her parents were saying to her. She had always thought that she had to be an engineer, or a doctor. Those ideas had never sounded appealing to her... but this idea made her happy. She nodded slowly._

_"Okay. I will."_

_

* * *

_

After a romantic dinner, the couple took a romantic carriage ride, where he gave her a beautiful heart-shaped pendant with diamond studs.

They were in the car on the way home when Cameron turned to Chase.

"I had the best time tonight, Chase." He nodded, focusing mainly on the road. Cameron wrinkled her eyebrows. "I love the necklace and earrings," she said, reaching up to play with the pendant. Chase nodded.

"I'm glad you like it, Cam," he said, still looking nervous.

"Hey, Chase," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder, as they pulled into the guest parking lot for her apartment complex. Chase looked up and down and around before finally making eye contact with Cameron.

"Cameron…?"

"Yeah?"

"I… love you."

* * *

"I hope this is okay… I wasn't sure if you liked Italian food," House said gruffly, fixing his tie as they sat down at the table. Cuddy smiled, nodding her head.

"I love Italian food," she said, looking over the menus that the waiter had placed in front of them. They sat in silence for a few moments, not an awkward one, more comfortable than one would have suspected.

"Look… Cuddy. I don't… really know how to do these things… I'm not … a dating guy – I haven't been on a date for a while." Cuddy blushed softly and turned to look at him.

"Just… be yourself." House looked at her with his ice blue eyes and they exchanged a glance and a smile

* * *

Cameron sat up straighter in the car, looking into Chase's expectant blue eyes. The words were sitting on the tip of her tongue but something was holding her back, keeping them in.

"You… what?"

"I love you."

"You. Love. Me? Why…?"

"You're beautiful, smart, funny, and you make me so unbelievably happy. I just love you."

"Well, I… I…." Chase stared at her.

"You don't… love me?" Cameron shook her head.

"No, it's not that… just, with my life, and… my husband – it's just hard for me." Chase slumped back into his chair.

"No – I understand," Chase said, almost coldly. "I think… that maybe we should be apart for a while."

"But, Chase – "

"No, Cameron. I'll… see you around, I guess." Cameron stared at him for a second and then with one reluctant wave, she got out of the car and closed the door behind her. Chase drove away, leaving an trail of exhaust behind him. Cameron stood for a moment, feeling a mixture of numbness, sadness, and anger. She headed down to her apartment and stuck the key in the whole, before hesitating and heading down to the parking lot. She got into her car and drove away.

* * *

"Hit me barkeep," Cameron said, slamming her glass on the table, sliding it towards the bartender. The woman looked at her and sighed, resting her elbows on the counter.

"You really should stop with that," she looked at Cameron with her crystal blue green eyes. Cameron looked up and sighed.

"I have had… a really awful night," she said, feeling the buzz in her head. The woman reached under the counter and pulled out a bowl of nuts.

"Joey, I'm going to take five! Cover for me!" she yelled in the back and went around the counter to sit at the barstool next to Cameron.

"My name's Remy Hadley," Remy said, extending her hand. Cameron smiled lightly, shaking the woman's hand.

"My name is Allison Cameron," she said, slumping down into her chair, resting her face in her hands.

"So why is your night so bad?" Remy asked, concerned for this stranger that she had only spent a few moments with. Cameron sighed. She had just enough to drink that she had no qualms about divulging her personal life to a stranger, but was sure that she could drive home.

"I… just broke up with my boyfriend." Remy gave a sympathetic smile and rubbed Cameron's shoulder. Cameron nodded, brushing a stray hair out of her face. She felt tears brimming in her eyes and she took a deep calming breath.

"Was there… someone else?"

"No… not technically, I guess. My husband died when I was 21 and… I've been sort of afraid to reach out to anyone since then… he was the love of my life… and I'm… just so afraid to loose someone so important to me again." Remy nodded, understanding where she was coming from. "And when he said those three -," she stopped talking, realizing how self-centered and inconsiderate she sounded. Remy smiled.

"He said he loved you, didn't he." Cameron looked at her, shocked.

"And you didn't – couldn't say anything."

"How – did you know?" Remy shrugged.

"Out of what you told me… I sort of put it together. But… do you?"

"Love him? I don't even know… I mean, I love being with him and we have so much fun together… but I don't know if I'm ready to say that yet. I mean, I'm not even sure I feel it yet." Remy nodded, understanding.

"It really all comes down to... what you want and how you feel. He can't make you feel anything you don't and neither can you. If it's meant to be… it will happen."

* * *

Cameron sat in her car, feeling unbelievably crappy, horribly rejected, and those feelings for Chase were still there. She turned the key in the ignition and paying a lot of attention to the road, not wanting to get pulled over and having to take a breathalyzer test – she was perfectly coherent, but was sure that the cops wouldn't see it that way.

As she drove down the road, trying not to think about Chase and miserably failing, she missed the street that she had to turn down to get to her apartment.

"Crap," she said, looking behind her and doing a U-turn at a break in the street. Her purse fell off the seat and as she leaned over to get it, a car was going the opposite direction of hers and hit her straight on. Her neck jerked back and forth and the airbags popped out immediately, and she was immediately plastered to her seat. The windshield cracked, but did not shatter, and she thanked God for that. She reached for her phone with her free hand and dialed 9-1-1.

"There's been an accident… on the corner of State and Third … I'm okay, I think … I don't know about the other person."

"I'll send help right away." Cameron sat in the seat, taking deep calming breaths, trying to ignore the crushing pain of the airbag on her chest. Nothing else on her body seemed to be in pain and she just sat in the silence of the night, listening to the other cars passing by and trying not to obsess about the damage done to her car. Moments later, she heard sirens in the distance and a police car and an ambulance pulled up next to the cars. A sob caught in her throat as she saw her beautiful car, demolished basically to bits. They made sure Cameron was okay, medically, and the guy out of the car that had hit her also. He looked at her, leaning against the car, and jogged over to her.

"I am so so sorry… I wasn't really paying attention and I didn't see you until it was too late. I'm Cole Jameson," he said, eyeing Cameron with a small smile and holding out his hand to shake. Cameron shook it, giving a small smile and then looked away.

"I have to call my insurance company… to let them know…," she said, gesturing to her phone and turning away. She spoke for a few moments, letting the company know what had happened, where she was, and the name and number of her auto shop. While she spoke with her insurance agent, she was really looking at Cole. He had brown hair and green eyes much like her own, with an attractive face and a wonderful build. But even with looking a lot different then Chase, even a different accent, Chase's face kept popping in her head. Cole locked eyes with her and smiled, Cameron smiled back, but had to look away. Within a few minutes, the tow truck came and took her car to the shop to be repaired. She gave them her cell phone number to contact her. Cameron turned to Cole, feeling such the opposite that she had earlier that night.

"I should go…" she said, hailing a taxi.

"Maybe I'll see you around?" Cameron nodded and waved, stepping inside the cab.

Arriving back at her apartment, Cameron took off her dress and threw on some sweats, pulling a cardboard box out of the broom closet. She dumped the red dress into the box, and took off her necklace and studs that he had given her tonight. Cameron went around her apartment in a blind daze, pulling books and movies off the shelves, a few cooking utensils out of drawers in the kitchen, and clothes out of drawers and shirts and pants out of the closet. She took the black dress that she had worn on their first date and folded it in the box as well, feeling tears brim on the corner of her eyes. The blanket that lay on the couch that they liked to watch movies with also went in the blanket and finally, the pictures. The one on the coffee table was one of her and her five friends: Amber had was leaning affectionately on Wilson's shoulder, Cameron, behind Chase with her arms wrapped around his neck, and House and Cuddy next to each other on the couch, not touching, but close enough that one could almost see the electricity between them. The photo wasn't taken by a professional, just a digital camera set up on the counter in Amber and Wilson's living room. It was her second favorite picture and now she had to get rid of it. Her favorite picture was of her and Chase, the day that he came to school to ask her out. Amber had spied on them and taken this picture of the two of them standing in the hallway – you could only see the sides of their faces and the hallway lights sort of illuminated their faces. He was holding her hands and a small smiled played at both of their lips. Cameron slumped into the couch, wanting to cry – they had both been so happy that day, and now everything had gone to hell. She threw the picture in the box, as well as a few more of his things, or things that reminded her of him. Cameron crawled under the covers and cried herself to sleep.

* * *

Cuddy, being the one with the car, had picked up House, driven to the restaurant, and was now parked outside House's apartment.

"I had a really great time tonight," she said, looking down and blushing. House nodded.

"Me too." The night had truly been wonderful – it started out a little quiet and slow, but as it went on, they began to talk and come out of their shells. Cuddy was laughing and House gave Cuddy a few rare smiles, but when he did, it felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest.

"So, I'll see you later?" Cuddy said, a hint of disappointment in her voice. She hadn't expected… anything, but maybe an invitation inside. House looked at her, noticing the disappointment in her voice.

"Do you… maybe…."

"What?"

"Want to take a ride on my motorcycle?" Cuddy's eyes widened, and then realized that he had a real motorcycle. "Your real motorcycle." Cuddy blushed. "Um… okay." House limped out of the car, headed over to the motorcycle, swung his leg over the side, and put his cane into the attachment on the side and handed her the extra helmet. Cuddy smiled, and sat behind him, putting her hands on his shoulders and fit the helmet on her head. . He smiled, took her hands off his shoulders and placed them around his waist. She blushed again, burying her face in his shoulder, breathing in his scent. House was about to flinch away, but realized he liked the feeling of her close to him, and they drove off. Cuddy smiled, thinking how this was the perfect end to a great night.

* * *

So I really hoped you like it, I worked hard and long on this chapter [16 pages in Microsoft Word!] I've actually already starting writing chapter nine [in the middle of chapter five, I had an inspiration]. I hope you like it and thanks for reading ad reviewing!!


	9. Chapter 9

So, here's the next chapter. It's definately not as long or close to being somewhat as good as the last one, but this is just basically how Cameron's dealing with the breakup. And a little of Cuddy. This story is probably going to be over in a few chapters and I'm sad and happy at the same time - sad, because I've had so much fun writing this but happy because I've read some amazing stuff from the people that have read mine, made some good connections on here, and have never finished a FF before [I always get really lazy.]

I was thinking about doing a sequel, but only if you guys would be interested in it - I know you really can't say much now because I haven't finished but for some of you, if you really want one, just include it in a review or something like that.

Thanks for all of your support, and as always, read, review, and enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I don't own House MD, characters, storylines, etc.**

**Copyright: I only own this one.**

* * *

"Come on, come on!" Cameron yelled, frantically sorting through the piles of clothing in the closet, on the floor, in the dressers. Her favorite purple sweater was nowhere, and she was deliriously close to being late for work. She was always careful to make sure that she never left clothing in the washing machines or dryers, and her laundry for the week was finished already, so no clothes were hanging in the bathroom or on the counter. It took a solid ten minutes of looking before she realized, with a sinking heart that her top was at Chase's, along with her second favorite pair of jeans, a little black dress, and her comfiest pair of slippers. Those were some of her favorite clothes and there was a good chance that she was not going to get them back. She leaned back on the bed, letting the events of last night envelope her. The fact that she was going to have to hail a cab to get to work and her car was in the shop would have reminded her soon enough anyway. The bartender, Remy Hadley, popped into her head, who morphed into Cole, who morphed into Chase's blonde hair and brilliant white smile. Cameron looked at the clock, a sharp pain resounding throughout her body, and jumped back into action, quickly throwing on a blue short-sleeved button up blouse and heading out the door.

* * *

It was during lunch when he called. Cameron was with Amber and some of the other teachers around a table when her phone started to buzz in her pocket. She had been so used to Chase calling around this time, so she wasn't sure what to expect. An unknown number flashed across the screen and she excused herself to go stand in the hallway.

"Hello?"

"Is this Allison Cameron?" A male's voice came through the speaker.

"This is she."

"Hi… Allison, this is Cole. Cole Jameson from … last night." Cameron winced, but she put on a cheerful voice anyway.

"Hi, Cole. Um, how did you get my number?"

"Well, when you were telling the service guys the number to call when your car was done, I sort of listened." A smile tugged at her lip. It was borderline stalker, but since he was cute, it was okay. "So, I just wanted to make sure you were okay, you seemed sort of upset last night… besides the fact that I wrecked your car – which, again, I'm sorry about." Cameron giggled.

"It's okay. And I'm okay… I had just had a really bad night – my boyfriend… well, ex-boyfriend now, and I had just broken up. So it wasn't really about the car, but it's really okay." There was a pause on the line, and when Cole responded, he sounded considerably happier than when he had spoken only seconds ago.

"Okay, I have to go, but… again, I'm really sorry about the car. Do you think I could maybe repay you?"

"Oh, don't worry about it, the insurance covers all my repairs, so it's basically nothing." Cole chuckled on the other line.

"I was talking maybe about dinner, sometime." Cameron paused and then words came tumbling out before she could stop them.

"Okay, that sounds great." She put a hand to her mouth, horrified.

"Okay, good! I'll call you sometime. Bye, Allison!" The line went dead after that. She headed back to the faculty lounge and sat back in her chair, a little dazed. Amber patted her on the shoulder.

"Who was that? Are you okay?" Amber asked, turning to face her friend.

"It was no one. A guy that I met last night…" Amber raised her eyebrows. She stood up, grabbed Cameron by the arm, and dragged her over to the corner of the faculty lounge.

"There's an actual body attached to this arm you know!"

"Cameron, are you cheating on Chase?" Amber asked bluntly. Cameron shook her head, feeling another sharp pain go through her chest.

"No… we broke up last night." Amber stared at Cameron, dumbfounded and then wrapped her arms around her friend and hugged her.

"Cameron, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

"No… not really, but I will be – eventually, I hope. It was just awful," Cameron said, rubbing her temple with her fingers. "I just… I had never thought of Chase as someone who would hurt me… I mean, I wasn't expecting a serious relationship… but I had always thought that when it ended… it would have ended amicably, not like this." But as these words came out of Cameron's mouth, she saw last night's events playing in her head, and the look on Chase's face when she couldn't say those words to him – he was the one that had looked hurt - she was only feeling the aftermath.

* * *

As Cuddy drove to Cameron's apartment, she was still high off her date with House. Out of their group of friends, Wilson had known best how Cuddy felt about House – he was ecstatic about what had happened with the kiss and the date. Wilson knew how hurt House had been before and to see him not brooding and being miserable made Wilson happy. House had called Wilson after their date and when Cuddy arrived back at her house, there were three messages from Wilson, begging her to call him. They had talked and Wilson had told her that this was a good thing. Cuddy looked up and realized she was sitting in the parking lot of Cameron's apartment, zoning off about House. She shook her head and turned off the engine, heading to Cameron's apartment, and knocking on the door. Cameron, who had changed out of her work clothes in record timing, was lying on the couch with a box of Godiva chocolate, headed over to the door and smiled at Cuddy, gesturing her in with a small wave.

"What's going on? Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?"  
"Chase didn't show up at work." Cameron winced at the mention of Chase. "And when I called the school, they told me you had already left. Plus, the Godiva and the pajamas."

"Chase… and I split up last night," Cameron said, collapsing onto the couch, wrapping herself in the blanket she had gotten from the broom closet. She inadvertently glanced over at the "Chase" box in the corner and winced again. Cuddy sat next to Cameron on the couch, wrapping her arm around her friend. Cameron leaned her head against Cuddy's shoulder, feeling tears brimming on her eyes, and a few spilling out over her cheeks. Cuddy, trying to be supportive, didn't say anything, just hugged her friend as she began to cry.

* * *

After her crying jag that afternoon, Cameron decided to go out and be spontaneous – no crying anymore over what happened and what could have been. She sat, parked outside her hair salon, taking deep breaths. Chase had always loved her chestnut brown hair, but she had always wanted to go blonde. Her bangs were due for a trim anyway and she had always wanted long curly layers.

An hour and a half later, she walked out of the salon with golden hair, parted on the side, curled at the ends. A guy walking down the street whistled at her and she blushed, tucking her new hair behind her ear and got back into the car. She took a deep breath and caught sight of her reflection in the mirror. She started to cry again, putting her head down on the steering wheel, her thin shoulder shaking from tears. Cameron sat up, blinking out the rest of her tears, swiping under her eyes to prevent mascara stains. She fished for her phone in her oversized bag and looked in her recent calls for an unknown number. She dialed it, hearing a familiar voice on the other line.

"Hi! Cole! It's me… Cameron. About that date…"


	10. Chapter 10

Hey everyone! I hope you guys have been liking this so far, I mean I know it's sort of typical with Cameron and Chase, but I had hoped that it was a different enough plotline that you could still be interested. I've had so much fun writing this, but it's going to be over in about three chapters. I've never finished a story and I thank you guys so much for giving me support and reviewing and I'm so so happy :) I've made some really great connections on here and have read amazing stories from you guys as well.

So since this story is coming to a close, I've started another one - it's the only other one on my profile, The Past Can Never Leave. It's starting out a little slow but it'll get there, I promise!

**Disclaimer: I don't own House M.D, characters, or storylines.**

**Copyright: This story, however, does belong to me. And Cole.**

So, as always, read, review, and enjoy!

* * *

"Wow…you look… beautiful," Cole said, admiring Cameron's navy blue dress with a little keyhole knot at the top, her long legs, and her green sparkling eyes. "I love your hair, the blonde looks great on you." Cameron's broken heart, half swelled with pride that he thought she looked beautiful, and half dying because that was what Chase had told her the night they had broken up.

"Thanks," she said, buckling her seatbelt and smiling as they made their way down winding roads. The silence was deafening for a few moments, the pressure of something great to say heavily resting on their shoulders.

"So how are you?" Cole asked. Cameron seriously considered his question – she was still miserable over Chase, happy that she was on this date, enamored with her new hair, but even though the good feelings outweighed the bad in number, this aching feeling was still there.

"I'm good," she fibbed, not wanting to hurt his feelings.

"Do you think you made a good decision calling me tonight?" Cole flirted, smiling as Cameron took a deep breath and looked into Cole's eyes.

"I do," she said honestly.

* * *

Cuddy smiled at the man sitting on the other side of the couch, who was paying more attention to her than the movie. She could feel his ocean blue eyes on her, watching her react to the scenes in the movie, and breathe in and out.

"Why don't you watch the movie?" Cuddy asked. House turned to look at her.

"Because… you are much much prettier than she is." Cuddy blushed, kissing House, scooting up closer to him on the couch, resting her head in the crook of his shoulder. He put his arm around her, holding her close, feeling the beating of her heart, and feeling her warm breath on his chin. His heart began to pound and he lifted her head with his finger and kissed her again. She kissed him back, putting her hand on his face, pulling him down horizontal on the couch.

* * *

"I had a really great time tonight," Cole said, the engine running as he was dropping Cameron off. Cameron smiled at him.

"Do you… want to come in?" Cole raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"Okay," he said, turning off the car, following her into the apartment. She unlocked the door and they walked in, hanging their coats on the hooks and Cameron throwing her keys into the dish.

"Do you want something to drink?"

"Sure, a glass of water would be great," he said, looking around the apartment. He noticed the "Chase" box in the corner and headed over to it.

"What's this?" He called as Cameron poured the water. She headed back into the living room, panic rising as he went to uncover it. She rushed over to him, swatting his hand away from the box.

"Just some stuff I'm giving away," she said, handing him the glass of water. Cole nodded, taking a sip of the water and then setting it down on the coffee table. He wrapped his arms around Cameron and Cameron relaxed into his hold. He looked at her and then leaned down, kissing her. Cameron, sad and confused, kissed him back, pulling him into the bedroom.

* * *

Cuddy sat on the bed wrapped in a blanket as House was in the bathroom, her heart pounding as she kept the sheet tightly wrapped around her. The kiss had led to other things and on the fourth date, Cuddy had already put out. The faucet had stopped and Cuddy watched as House turned off the light and came back to the bed, kissing Cuddy on the cheek.

"You should wear that more often," House smirked, running his fingertips over her bare shoulders.

"I'm not… wearing anything."

"Exactly," House said, kissing her again. The bridge between them had closed and even though he hadn't known her for that long, there was something about her, her curvy body, or the way she always had to have what she wanted, or the way her blue green crystal eyes would send shivers up and down his neck. Cuddy blushed a pink and House kissed her arm, his scruffy beard tickling her. She giggled, turning on the television, snuggling up to him as they fell asleep.

* * *

Still not having gotten curtains for her room, the sun shone brightly through the window, rousing Cameron out of a light, fitful sleep. She stretched and sat up quickly to find no one in her bed, just a peace of paper.

_I would have woken you, but you looked so peaceful – I had an early patient and I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye. I had a great time last night and I hope that we can do it again sometime. _

_Cole_

Cameron smiled, placing the note on her bedside table, remembering the first time that she and Chase had slept together, how he had cooked for her and everything. She leaned back into her pillows, wanting to cry again. It was the second time in a year that she had put out on the first date – the first because she was drunk and the second because she was hurt and confused. She reached for the phone to call Cuddy and the answering machine picked up.

"Hi, this is – hello? Hello?"

"Cuddy? Did I wake you up?" Cuddy blushed.

"No… I'm actually just getting home…"

"Getting home? Did you stay at House's place?"

"Actually… yeah, I did."

"Wow… is this getting serious?"

"Serious for four dates yeah." Cameron smiled, happy for her friend.

"So...," Cuddy began cautiously, not wanting to step on the thin ice that was Cameron's heart right now. "How was your date with Cole?"  
"It was… good. It was a little awkward at first, but we managed to get past it."

'That's good," Cuddy said, smiling, and then furrowed her brow.

"Cameron…"

"Mmhmm?"

"I just… want you to be careful… I mean, you and Chase just… just broke up."

"I know, I was there," Cameron said, a little defensive of her situation.

"It's normal… to want to have a rebound thing after getting out of a serious relationship… but you have to be careful. I mean, you could end up hurting Cole, or worse, hurting yourself. I mean… did your feelings for Chase just disappear that night?"

"I mean, no… but I'm moving on, moving forward. Cole is sweet and I think it could really be great between us… and I'll be okay. I promise."

* * *

Weeks passed and Cameron's heart was broken in two, one half grieving over the loss of Chase and the other deliriously happy with her new love affair with Cole. She desperately tried to forget about Chase, but every time Cole smiled at her, placed a hand on her hip, or looked at her with his green eyes, her heart would pound furiously and then falter as any gesture would usually remind her of Chase. It was a strange sensation, being so happy and so sad at the same time, and she felt upset for not being fair to Cole. He was so nice and she felt awful for dragging his heart all over New Jersey, but being alone made her feel ten times worse and maybe Cole could be what she needed to get over Chase and maybe Cole would be the one for her, if it wasn't her damn bad luck that she met Chase first.

"What are you doing right now?" Cole asked. Cameron smiled, pouring herself a glass of water, holding the phone to her ear with her shoulder.

"Just sort of hanging out. Why?"

"How about you meet me for coffee?"

"Is everything okay?"

"Yes, everything is okay; I just desperately need to see you." Cameron laughed.

"Meet you at Starbucks in 20 minutes or so? I have to fill up the car with gas."

"Okay, Cam. See you soon! Bye!" Cameron quickly watched her face, straightened her bangs, and threw her curly hair up into a bun. She pulled into the first Shell station on the way to Starbucks, stepping out of the car into the freezing January weather. Cameron wrapped her black coat around her thin body, shivering as she pushed the nozzle in the hole, leaning against the car. A black Ford Taurus pulled up in the filling station across from hers and Cameron watched as a blonde man got out of the car and they locked eyes from across the way. Cameron froze instantly, her knees locked and her breath starting to falter.

"Hi… Chase."


	11. Chapter 11

Here's chapter 11 - I'm on spring break for two weeks so chapters will probably be coming a lot more quickly and maybe I could resume work on the other story - the first chapter is up in case you want to read it.

**Disclaimer: I don't own House M.D, characters, or storylines.**

**Copyright: I just own this story. And Cole. **

* * *

Something wasn't right – she was sure of it. Cuddy paced around her living room, gnawing on her thumbnail, the television muted in the background. The first clue was the extra pill in her medicine cabinet from the other day. The second major clue was that she was late. Since the seventh grade, Cuddy had always been exactly on time and now, suddenly in her late thirties, she hadn't started on time, making Cuddy extremely nervous and panicked. Cuddy tended to be extremely patient but the waiting was driving her insane and making her head all foggy. Pouring herself a cup of hot coffee, she settled down on the couch, turning on the television and waiting. '_Today isn't over yet,'_ she thought to herself, watching as snow started to fall outside.

Whether she was in a relationship or single, Cuddy had always seen a baby in her future. But now, while she was in a relationship… it was too soon for them. And while House had been amazing with her so far, the idea of telling him that she could possibly be pregnant made her stomach turn with anticipation and nervousness. He was opening up to her and she felt so comfortable with him. Cuddy wrapped herself in a blanket, feeling her heart pound and leaned back, trying not to worry.

* * *

The ex-couple stood out in the cold winter air, as snow began to fall around them, tiny white ballerinas dancing to the ground. Chase sighed, running his fingers through his blonde wavy hair, making quick eye contact with her, and then looking away. He hadn't seen her in about a month, since the night they had broken up, reminding him of the hurt and pain that had accompanied that night.

"Hi, Cameron," he said, turning his back to her as he selected the gas for his car and pushed the nozzle into the hole. She took a deep breath, and hurried over to him, wrapping her coat around her body, shivering in the cold weather.

"How are you?"

"I'm… fine, how are you?" Chase asked coldly, crossing his arms, and leaning against the car. Cameron watched his every move and the way his blue eyes flickered to and from her face.

"I'm…," Cameron thought about that question again. Her heart was about to pound out of her chest at seeing Chase again. She hadn't realized how much she really missed him until she saw him again. His blue eyes bore a hole in her heart and she wrapped her coat around herself even tighter, just to hold herself together in one piece.

"Cameron? Are you okay?" Chase asked, looking at her as she sorted through all of her thoughts. Cameron felt tears form in the corners of her eyes, hearing a trace of concern in his voice.

"Cuddy and House are dating."

"I… know that?"

"And… I'm seeing someone… his name's Cole. And she told me, to be careful you know, because of you and how upset I was… and still am, and she asked if my feelings for you disappeared in one night and I said no, but I was moving on. I lied, though, because as much as I'm trying to move forward and say moving forward, I keep thinking about you. And while Cuddy probably expects me to give her advice on her and House, I don't know how much I can give her because obviously I'm not the relationship expert and I try and I can't and my point is that I'm an idiot and a hypocrite. And I really… miss you." Cameron said, exhaling quickly, watching as his eyes widened at the end of her sentence. She took a sharp inhale, turning around, yanking the nozzle out of her car, and driving away. Chase watched as she drove away, thinking about how much he had really missed her too.

* * *

Cameron drove away from the gas station towards her apartment in a hurry, tears rolling down her cheeks. She pulled out her cell phone, dialing Cole's number.

"Hey, sweetie, are you almost here?"

"Hey, Cole, I don't know if I can come, I think I have a bug of some sort."

"Are you okay? Do you need me to bring you anything?"

"I'll be okay," she said, evading the question. "You don't need to bring me anything; I don't want you to catch it."

"Call me when you feel better?"

"I will. Bye," she said, opening the door to her apartment, throwing her keys, coat, and purse in a pile on the couch. Cameron slumped into the pile, wrapping her arms around her chest. She fished around for the remote and turned on the television, her eyes wandering around the room before finally landing on the "Chase" box. She picked it up and set it next to her on the couch, taking a deep breath before uncovering it. Everything was there, exactly as she had left it that night. Cameron pulled out her black dress from their first date, running it through her fingers. She reached in the box and pulled out more things, and finally the necklace he had given her the night that he had told her that he loved her. With a startling realization, the pieces clicked into place as she realized that her fears were irrational – love had hurt her in the past, but she wasn't 21 anymore; She had grown older and matured. She didn't always have to distance herself from everyone, hurting herself and everyone involved. In fact, Cameron did love Chase. A sob tore through her chest as she realized she could have screwed up the one relationship, the one chance for things to be right with her life.

* * *

The phone rang and Cuddy looked at the caller ID, debating whether to pick it up.

"Hi, House."

"Hi… Cuddy. I had a really great time the other day," House said, and Cuddy could hear him grinning on the other line and it made Cuddy smile. "So…. Do you want to do something tonight maybe?" Cuddy wrinkled her brow, a deep line of worry etching in her forehead.

"I… can't."

"Plans with Cameron?"

"No… not exactly."

"Is everything okay?"

"I think so…"

"You can tell me if something's wrong," House said in a rare moment of affection, that made Cuddy consider telling him.

"It's nothing."

"Why won't you tell me?" Cuddy recoiled, realizing that House sounded both sad and angry.

"Are you mad at me?"

"I just don't know why you won't tell me – did you kill someone?" House asked sarcastically. Cuddy laughed.

"No, nothing like that," she said firmly, deciding not to tell him.

"Why don't you call me when you can tell me?" The line went dead and Cuddy took the phone from her ear, staring at it in her hand. She immediately realized that she made a mistake in not telling him what was going on with her. Her resolve in the situation wavered and she redialed his number. After one ring, it went straight to voicemail and her heart sunk as she realized she made a horrible mistake and she put the phone back on the hook and leaned back on the couch, rubbing her temples. The phone rang and Cuddy lunged for it.

"Hello? Hello?"

"Hi, Cuddy?"

"Oh… hi Cameron," Cuddy said glumly.

"I was going to come over… is that okay?"  
"Sure…"

"Is everything okay?" There was a pause.

"No…"  
"I'll be over there in five minutes… do you need to bring me anything?" Cuddy took a deep breath.

"A pregnancy test?" Cameron took in a sharp breath.

"I'll be right over."

Twenty minutes later, Cameron rang the doorbell holding up a Walgreens bag. Cuddy shook her head.

"I'm okay," Cuddy said and immediately Cameron understood, rushing forward to give Cuddy a hug.

"I'm so happy for you," Cameron sighed, letting go of Cuddy and putting the bag on the floor. "Could you imagine telling House that you were pregnant?" Cuddy sighed, going back to the couch.

"You didn't tell him, did you?"

"Well… no, but he was upset that I wasn't talking to him. Go figure, right? I have to practically beg him to tell me things, but I don't tell him one thing and he's mad at me. I don't understand it…" Cuddy said, tears starting to pour down her cheeks. Cameron sat down next to Cuddy and rubbed her back.

"You have to take your mind off of this," Cameron said, standing back up and going to the kitchen, making a pot of coffee. "So… I have some news." Cuddy looked over her shoulder at her friend.

"What is it?"

"I ran into Chase this morning…" Cuddy's eyes widened and she lept off the couch.

"You've been here fifteen ten minutes and now you tell me this?"  
"We just ran into each other… but I didn't really realize how much I missed him until I saw him today."

"Are you guys getting back together? Does he want to meet up later? Tell me everything!"  
"There's nothing to tell… but, Cuddy, I think I made a really big mistake… I do really love him."

"Then tell him that! He would take you back in a heartbeat… he loves you so much."

"Maybe…" Cameron said, pouring both of them a cup of coffee and settling down for the afternoon.

* * *

After a nice, relaxing day with Cuddy, Cameron headed home. After she took a shower and changed into sweats, she sat on the couch, taking a deep breath and sighing, thinking about everything that her and Cuddy talked about that day. After deciding what the right thing to do was, she pulled out her phone, dialing a familiar number.

"Hi Cole, it's me. We need to talk."


	12. Chapter 12

Hi everyone :) I hope you've been reading and been liking it... sadly, the next chapter is it. I've had so much fun writing this and after my other story is done [which the first chapter is already up], I was thinking of doing a sequel to this story... Thoughts?

**Disclaimer: I don't own House MD, characters, or storylines.**

**Copyright: Just mine. And Cole.**

As always, read, review, and enjoy!

* * *

Cameron sat anxiously in a small restaurant a few blocks from her apartment, tapping her heel against the floor. She watched as people came in and out, but no one she was looking for. Finally, she saw that familiar head of brown hair and she waved him over.

"Hi, Cameron," Cole said, leaning over to give her a kiss and sliding into the seat across from her. "Is everything okay?" he said, looking at her. "You sounded really anxious on the phone." Cameron nodded, swallowing a lump in her throat. She opened her mouth to speak a few times, but all of her words seemed too mundane, too insignificant.

"Have you ever been in love?" Cole smiled, folding his hands on the table.

"I love being in love."  
"But that's two different things…" Cole laughed.

"Yes, I've been in love."

"Do you think… there is only one person for everyone?" Cole paused.

"No… not really, no." Cameron looked down, tucking a piece of hair behind her hair, looking distraught.

"That's not what you wanted to hear, is it?" Cameron shook her head.

"No, everyone's entitled to their own opinion." Cole watched her facial expressions.

"You're not into this, are you?"

"No, I am! I mean, I want to be."

"Those are two different things," Cole echoed Cameron, reaching out and grabbing her hand.

"I'm sorry…" Cole shook his head.

"Don't apologize – you can't apologize for how you feel." Cameron nodded a weight lifting off her chest.

* * *

Cuddy paced around her living room some more, worried not about a potential pregnancy but the fact that she potentially screwed up a great thing in her life. She had been dialing House all day, trying to get him to talk to her, but it would just ring and ring and ring. She finally gave up and was about to head to bed, but the phone rang, and she lunged for it, tripping over herself to answer it, not even bothering to look at the caller ID.

"House?"

"No… It's Wilson. What gave me away?" Cuddy smiled, sitting down on the couch.

"So what's going on between you and House?"

"How… did you know?"

"We hung out today," he began to explain, and Cuddy blushed realizing that was why House didn't pick up the phone, not a lack of wanting to talk to her. "And he was more cynical and sarcastic than usual… I figured you two had a fight."

"Sort of… He doesn't fight though… he just gets mad and then doesn't talk to me. I've been calling him all day, but even besides him not being there, I don't think he would have answered…" Cuddy said, disappointed. Wilson sighed on the other line.

"Do you remember when we talked while you were first starting to talk and warm up to each other?"

"Yeah?"

"I had told you that I was extremely surprised that he was going forward with this… but House is so cold and distant… whatever it was, you're just going to have let him get over this himself." Cuddy smiled.

"Thanks Wilson…," the phone beeped in her hand and she turned to look at the caller-ID, hoping it would be House and her heart sunk when she recognized Cameron's number on the screen. "Cameron's calling me on the other line, I have to go. Thank you…Wilson, for everything." Her heart warmed for her friend – even though they hadn't known each other for very long, but they had connected and she considered Wilson another best friend.

"Bye, Cuddy."

"Bye, Wilson. Hello?" Cuddy asked, pressing the flash button to switch over to Cameron's call.

"Hey."

"You sound a little distressed… Is everything okay?"

"Everything's good… Cole and I broke up."

"Aw sweetie, I'm sorry."

"No… no, it's a good thing. I… actually wanted to talk to you… get your opinion on something."

"Okay?"  
"This morning… after we talked, I went home… and you know that box in the corner?"

"Your 'Chase' box?"

"Right," Cameron blushed, realizing her friend knew her better than she had given her credit for. "So… I was just… looking through everything… What would you think about Chase and me getting back together?" Cuddy's eyes widened, but Cameron also knew Cuddy better than she thought.

"I don't know anything for sure! I haven't even talked to him… since we ran into each other the other day. I am not even sure that he wants to get together. I just… since seeing him, I've been thinking about him…"

"More than you were?" Cuddy teased.

"But… I love him, I really do," Cameron admitted, smiling to hear Cuddy's sigh of relief.

"That's great, Cameron – I always knew you did."

"I have an idea for this… I'll need your help though."

* * *

Cuddy was smiling heading into work that morning, pushing all of her complicated feelings for House aside and focusing on the fact that it couldn't result in awkward silences and conversations with Chase. She had predicted that he would be in a better mood after seeing Cameron and she knew exactly what to ask him and what to talk about.

"Hi, Chase." Chase looked up from the stovetop to the doorway.

"Hi Cuddy," he said, a little shocked – the couple who used to converse daily about anything from favorite recipes to experiences in high school, after Cameron and Chase's awkward breakup, they had stopped talking. Cuddy, while not entirely surprised by his reaction, had hoped that these initial words would have unlocked some sort of door. She shrugged, fixing the knot on her apron and getting to work.

"So… Cameron mentioned that she saw you," Cuddy said bluntly, watching Chase react for a second, then regain his composure and then nod wordlessly.

"Was it nice to see her?"

"Sure," Chase said shortly, not meeting Cuddy's eyes as he reached over her shoulder to grab something. Cuddy smirked, continuing to prep the chicken.

"Do you want something to happen?"

"Cameron asked you to ask me about this, didn't she?" Cuddy blushed.

"To tell you the truth… I've really missed her too… I just… there's some stuff that we need to talk about before. Would you help me?" Cuddy sighed – first Cameron, now Chase – but then she raised her eyebrow; this could be interesting.

* * *

Cameron had spent the whole day in frenzy, worrying about what was going on between Cuddy and Chase. Cuddy hadn't answered her phone during her break and Cameron was too afraid to call Chase, even though deleting his number from her contacts didn't stop her from having his number imprinted in her brain. Not being one for patience, as soon as she had delivered all of her kids safely to their parents in the carpool line, Cameron raced to her car and dialed Cuddy's number, fumbling over the numbers so many times that she had to take a few calming breaths to correctly dial the number.

"Please… please tell me you talked to Chase," she said, buckling her seatbelt and pulling out of the parking lot. Cuddy sighed audibly and Cameron furrowed her brow.

"What? Bad news?" Cameron's heart sunk and the hole in her heart started to reopen.

"I'm sorry… he just didn't want to hear anything about you… he said that you had hurt him too much and that he didn't think that there could be anything between you two ever again. He's talking about moving away again." Cameron had finally reached the parking lot of her apartment complex, listening to what Cuddy was telling her with a sinking heart. Cuddy bit her lip, the silence telling her more than any words could have possibly said. "I'm so sorry, Cameron." Cameron swallowed a lump in her throat, tears stinging her eyes.

"It's okay… maybe it'll be for the best." She took another deep breath. "I have to go."  
"Are you going to be okay?"  
"Yeah… I'll be… fine. Talk to you later." Cameron hung up the phone, grabbing her purse out of the passenger seat, the tears in her eyes now quickly rolling down her cheeks. She wiped under her eyes, turning her in the lock, opening the door to find Chase standing in her apartment.

* * *

"Cuddy?" a waitress said, tapping Cuddy on the shoulder. Cuddy turned around to face the young girl, smiling.

"Yes?"

"There's someone here… he said he wanted to talk to the chef here." Cuddy nodded, wiping her hands on her apron, and heading out to the dining area. She stopped as she realized exactly who wanted to talk to her. He stood up, leaning the against the table for support, rubbing his thigh.

"Hi, House," she said, sitting down, and he sat down across from her. "What are you doing here?" House looked anxious, not making eye contact with her.

"I'm sorry." Cuddy tilted her head, looking confused.

"Sorry for what?"

"I shouldn't have been upset with you… if you didn't want to tell me, that's okay. We're just starting to date, right?" Cuddy smiled at him, reaching across the table to grab his hand in hers.

"I should have told you… I mean, I shouldn't expect you to tell me things if I can't tell you things." House smiled a small smile, looking up at her.

"Are we okay?"

"We're okay."

"Will you tell me now?" Cuddy took a deep breath and looked him square in the eyes.

"The night that we… you know…" House smiled, vividly remembering that night. "The next morning… I realized that … I had forgotten to take my pill, and then I was late." House's eyes widened and he took an involuntary look down at Cuddy's stomach.

"Are you…?" Cuddy shook her head, squeezing his hand reassuringly.

"No, I'm not… and I'm so sorry, I really should have told you. I was afraid that you would have reacted badly to this… and I was scared."

"I understand… I don't seem like the soccer dad type to you, do I?" Cuddy smiled and shook her head, leaning over the table to kiss him softly.

* * *

Cameron's breath caught in her throat as she wiped under her eyes some more and ran her hands through her hair, trying to look presentable.

"What…?" Cameron was speechless, her heart pounding out of her chest to see him standing there in front of her.

"I'm sorry… I know where the spare key is," he said, moving a step closer to her.

"But Cuddy said…" Cameron said, realizing that Cuddy had said those things to make Cameron realize what she really felt for him. Cameron started to laugh as she cried, hardly able to see Chase through her tears.

"What, what's wrong?" Chase asked, putting his hands on her arms, looking her in the eyes.

"I love you, you idiot." Chase stared at her in shock before kissing her, wrapping his arms around her waist, holding her close to him. She threw his arms around his neck, and with this kiss, the hole in her heart was now closed for good.


	13. Chapter 13

* * *

Hi everyone! It's me xororygilmorexo - just a different penname. I was originally going to write Gilmore Girl fanfics and I had posted up a first chapter to one, but as much as I love it, I don't have the feel of the dialouge and the pop culture references - so I wanted to switch to something more House oriented because that, I can write.

My last chapter - I want to thank all of my readers and reviewers for encouraging me to go on. I've made some great connections, and more importantly, an amazing friend, from this. I've never finished a story so this is a momentous occasion for me.

I *am* planning on writing a sequel, so as soon as I finsih the other story I started, I will start that one. Or even before if I'm stricken with inspiration.

**Disclaimer and Copyright.**

So for the last time... read, review, and enjoy!

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Early that morning, Cameron had called in to work sick, brushed her teeth, put on a pot of coffee and snuck back into bed, and snuggling up to Chase's warm body. She reveled in the silence, thrilled to feel that the hole in her heart was firmly closed. She breathed in deep, smelling his cologne that had lingered from the night before. Chase's eyes flickered open, squinting from the bright sunlight that shone into her room and then turned to look at the beautiful woman looking up at him. He cradled her face in his hands and kissed her. She kissed him back and pressed her nose to his, rubbing her nose against him. He laughed, kissing her again and leaning back into the pillows, holding her close.

"I have missed you so much," he said, kissing her forehead and running his hands through her hair. "And did I tell you I like your hair?" Cameron smiled, twisting around in his arms, to look at him.

"You always told me you didn't want me to become blonde," she said, incredulous.

"I know… but I didn't realize how amazing you would look with it," Chase explained, running his fingers through his hands some more. Cameron smiled and turned on the television, leaning back on Chase's chest. It was like slipping into an old, holey sweatshirt – worn through, but so comfortable. Having Chase back in her life now made her feel like he had never left – those few weeks without him were torture and she was now trying so hard to block them out, to pretend like they had never existed. Even with the help of Cuddy, Amber, Wilson, and even Cole, the pain was unbearable and she unconsciously held Chase tighter, as if to never let him go.

* * *

"What are you thinking about?" House asked, climbing back into bed, after he had called in sick. Cuddy smiled, leaning against House's chest.

"Nothing," Cuddy said, coyly.

"What?"

"I'm just… Chase and Cameron were supposed to get back together last night… and I keep wondering if it went well."

"Ken will get his Barbie, don't worry," House said, kissing her forehead and she playfully smacked him at the mention of Cameron as a Barbie. House laughed and kissed her again. Cuddy kissed him back and then slid out of bed, pulling a robe over her lace nightgown.

"Whoa, whoa, where are you taking that ass?" House asked, pulling her back to bed with him. She kissed him again, sliding out from his grip.

"I have to go to work… and sadly, the ass goes with me," she pleaded, running her hands through his already messy hair.

"Call in sick!"

"I can't…" House looked at her intensely with his blue eyes and cradled her face in his hands, kissing her. Cuddy's breath sputtered and caught in her throat as they kissed.

Five minutes later, she had called in sick to work (they protested loudly, not wanting to have both of their head chefs missing on the same day) and Cuddy was pulling out pots and pans in the kitchen. House limped over to her and pulled them out of your hands.

"Do you realize that you are always cooking for other people? Now, get your sweet ass in that chair and let me cook for you!" House scolded, putting the pans on the counter, and then proceeded to loudly open and close cupboards. She put a hand on his shoulder and turned him around.

"How about you cook and I hand you stuff?" Cuddy attempted to bargain and House reluctantly stepped aside, handing her the pans, watching as she made her way through the kitchen, pulling out everything he needed. She eluded a certain light from her soul that made his heart pound and his blood flow through his veins one hundred miles per hour. Cuddy made him feel like he had never felt before, not even with his last serious relationship. She was beautiful inside and out and while no one could possibly fathom him being actually happy, for once in his life, he truly was.

* * *

"God, I have missed your cooking," Cameron said ravenously, digging into the pile of food that Chase had placed in front of her. Within minutes, her plate was empty and Chase was piling more eggs, bacon, etc. on her plate. She picked up eggs with her fork, putting in as much as her mouth could hold. Chase laughed, piling what was left of the food onto his plate, kissing her on the forehead as he sat down next to her. They ate in silence for a few minutes, but the silence was comfortable; Cameron smiled as she finished off your food.

"How you stay skinny, I'll never know," Chase looked at her incredulously as she hopped off the barstool to wash the plate and begin to clean up. As Chase ate, she washed the pots and pans and then headed to the living room. Chase watched her open up the box and put movies and books back on the shelves.

"What… is that?" Heat rushed up her neck and colored Cameron's cheeks.

"It's a box of all your stuff…" Chase stood up, heading over to her. Cameron looked away, brushing the hair out of her face.

"When we broke up… I didn't want to see any of your stuff… so I just put it in a box." Chase started to laugh and Cameron put her hand on her hip, pouting.

"Why are you laughing at me?"

"If it makes you feel better, I have a Cameron box...," Cameron looked up, almost blinded by the perfection of his features, his bright blue eyes, his clear skin.

"With what in it?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his neck, swinging back and forth, and smiling, happy to be in his arms.

"Just your stuff… letters, books, some of your clothes. I didn't want to throw it away… in case… we… well." Cameron put a finger up to his lips, to quiet him down.

"I know."

* * *

Cuddy was in the bathroom cleaning up, applying creams and moisturizers and pulling at the laugh lines splashed across her face, willing them to go away. Even though House was in the next room whipping up some chocolate chip pancakes, her heart was beating a million miles an hour. Goosebumps rose on her arms as she remembered his hands gently roaming her body. She swore silently, trying so hard to will herself not to feel like this. If only she knew, he felt the same way about her.

She threw her robe back on, heading back on the kitchen, smiling to see a plate of pancakes in front of her. House held up the can of whipped cream and she nodded, as he sprayed her pancakes with an enormous amount. Cuddy laughed, holding up her palms to make him stop and he rolled his eyes, but put down the can in resignation. Cuddy sat on the chair, digging into her food.

"These are great." House looked up, surprised as he limped over to the table. He lowered himself into the chair, massaging his thigh muscle.

"Really?" he asked, digging into his own plate.

"There might be an opening at the restaurant," Cuddy pondered, finishing the food in a short amount of time and began to clean up. House watched her walk away and then reached out and grabbed her arm. Cuddy turned to look at him and he pulled her down onto his lap and kissed her. She dropped the plates on the table and kissed him back fiercely, putting her hands on the sides of his face. They kissed for a few moments and then she leaned back on him, resting her head in the crook of his shoulders. A pain shot through House's leg, but he ignored it, the feel of Cuddy's skin under his fingertips and the fresh shampoo smell of her raven black hair. He swore that he could stay like that forever – as long as she was with him.

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Amber traced around the numbers of her home phone, not wanting to make the two phone calls that she was about to make. Romance between friends was never easy, but if they wanted to all remain friends, she had to do this.

"Amber…" Wilson called from the other room, as if reading her mind.

"I'm calling!" She yelled back and took a deep breath, dialing Cuddy's number.

"Hello?" Cuddy picked up.

"Hi Cuddy. It's me, Amber."  
" Hi, Amber. Hold on one second. House, can you make another pot of coffee?" Amber wrinkled her brow. She hadn't heard anything besides the fact that House and Cuddy were in the middle of an argument. She waved Wilson over and he stood next to her, listening to Cuddy talk with House. Wilson looked at Amber and shrugged.

"I hadn't heard anything," he mouthed, kissing Amber on the cheek, and heading back to the kitchen to read the newspaper. Amber rolled her eyes at her husband, waiting for Cuddy to be done.

"Okay, I'm back. What's going on?" Amber was in shock for a moment, but she recovered quickly.

"I was thinking about having Super bowl Sunday at my house… would you and House want to come?"

"That sounds great, Amber. We'll be there. I have to go; House won't make the coffee. I'll see you then!" The line went dead and Amber stared at the phone in disbelief. House was never one to forgive and forget, yet here he was doing just that. She shook her head, blonde hair cascading over her shoulders. She now dialed Cameron, waiting for her to pick up.

"Cameron?"

"No… it's Chase. Hi, Amber," Chase said politely and Amber's jaw dropped.

"Hold on, one second." Amber headed into the kitchen, standing over Wilson with her hand on her hip.

"What?" Wilson asked, barely looking up.

"Chase is over at Cameron's. I thought they broke up too!" Wilson shrugged, turning the pages, not looking up again.

"Wilson?"

"I'm not wearing a shirt," Amber teased and Wilson's eyes immediately went up to Amber, ignoring the newspaper in front of him.

"That's not very nice," Wilson complained, kissing his wife before grabbing his briefcase and heading off to work. Amber smiled, watching him go, before putting the phone back up to her ear.

"Hi, Chase. Is Cameron there?"

"She's actually in the shower… Anything you need me to tell her?"

"I was actually hoping you both could come for Super bowl Sunday at my house."  
"We'll be there," Chase promised. "See you then – bye, Amber." The line went dead again and Amber stared at the receiver in her head, shaking her head, and then proceeding to tidy up the kitchen, cleaning the mess that Wilson had left behind

* * *

The two couples spent a lazy Friday and Saturday with each other, just content to be together and happy again. Sunday rolled around and they arrived at Amber and Wilson's, the men immediately cracking open the beer and the women preparing food and snacks. When the game came on, no one really paid attention – football was just an excuse to see each other more than usual. They shared stories and laughs, the three couples in love (two truly in love, one was just as good as in love), lying in each other's arms. Cameron and Chase explained to an eager crowd the story of their separation and their reunion as well as Cuddy and House (Cuddy mostly explained to the group, House was too busy trying to throw M&Ms down Amber's shirt).

As the sun set on New Jersey, the party came to a close, having stuffed themselves with Cuddy and Chase's excellent cooking and Amber's margaritas. After the game was over, House, Wilson, and Chase smoked cigars out on the patio while Cuddy and Cameron helped Amber clean up the mess they had made. House, Cuddy, Cameron, Chase said goodbye, waving to Wilson and Amber as they headed out to the cars. A car pulled up to the house next to Amber and Wilson's and a woman got up and looked over at Cameron. She waved and recognition flickered in Cameron's eyes as she realized that it was the bartender from the night of the accident. Cameron waved back, intertwining her fingers with Chase. Remy gave her thumbs up and Cameron smiled, warmth flooding through her.

"Who's that?" Chase asked, opening the car door for Cameron, and heading over to the driver's side. Cameron smiled, not exactly willing to tell him the story of her accident.

"A friend," she said simply.

Cuddy got on the back of House's motorcycle, clasping the helmet under her chin. Despite it being cold, she loved the feeling of holding onto him and going so fast that everything in sight was basically a blur. House fitted his cane into the slot, and revved the engine, driving off into the night.

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A few months later, spring was in full bloom and the couples were still together and happy. While Cuddy and House were taking things extremely slow (but enjoying where they both were at), Cameron and Chase were moving full-steam ahead. Chase's place was not often used; They had practically moved in together. Even though their relationship had lasted a long time, the spark never had blown out. He surprised her at work, always bringing a bouquet of flowers. Her class had taken to him, even begging him to stay for story time. Cameron always felt a rush of feelings every time he came into the room, or kissed or hugged her.

One night, on a warm May evening, Cameron and Chase sat at dinner, waiting for the dessert to come. Chase poured them both tall glasses of champagne and took Cameron's hand.

"The first time I saw you, I swore I had never seen anyone so beautiful in my entire life. I had no idea that you were so much more than that. You are kind, generous, smart, funny, and so many more things that would take me hours to name. The time we spent apart was unbearable, and when we reunited, I realized that I don't ever want to be apart, or with anyone else." The waiter came over and placed a piece of chocolate cake in front of Cameron, with a sparkly pear-shaped diamond ring gently placed on top of it.

"Oh my god," Cameron breathed, not able to take her eyes of it. Chase took the ring from the cake and knelt on one knee, holding the ring up in front of him.

"Allison Cameron, will you marry me?" Cameron started to cry, nodding her head.

"Yes, I'll marry you," She said through her tears, and Chase slid the ring onto her ring finger and stood up, pulling her into a passionate kiss. Pressed up next to each other, they could feel their hearts beating in tandem and they pulled away to gaze into each others eyes.

"I love you, Cameron."  
"I love you too, Chase."


End file.
